SOME UNHERALDED NIGERIAN ALHAJIS

TITLES and TAGS. We absolutely love them in this part of the world. Its not an elitist syndrome too. I mean, have you ever heard the chairman of the association of charcoal sellers being called anything other than 'chairman'? Azzin, call that person his name accompanied by an ordinary mister and countenance will change. In fact, I had a lecturer who struggled to earn his Ph.D.   A week after he eventually did, I had to sign something with him and it so happened that I called him Mr Adedoyin. LOL. Baba launched a tirade of how he had noticed I was always red-eyed, stone-faced and how “you cannot tell me you are not a cultist.”  That he had taught at #KwaraPoly and consequently met boys badder than I was; and I was going to carry some courses if I ever disrespected him by calling him Mr again.

Nawa o.
Shey because I forgot to call you your title means you’re no longer it ni?

But I won’t focus on his sadistic tendencies. Instead, I will attempt to discuss what is arguably the most popular tag in Nigeria; ALHAJI. As you must know, Hajj is the obligatory fifth, last but not least pillar of Islam. Hajj is not wholly mandated because of its financial demands. That said, it is something every Muslim must aspire to. According to Islamic stipulations ba, even though its obligatory, one must not think about it unless and until you’re in rude health physically, spiritually and financially. So, you should go on the pilgrimage when you’ve settled debt, bills, rent, allowances and child support. By dint of Islamic law, Hajj is not for the poor. As such, it is, on a very basic level, an indicator of your affluence.

ALHAJI is an honorific title bestowed on one who has been a pilgrim to Mecca and because this is an obligatory pillar of Islam, it is sometimes seen as one of the highest achievements of an adult Muslim because one has found a way to uphold all 5 pillars – which is no mean feat. Consequently, even if you have other titles like chief or doctor or captain or professor, some still prefer alhaji as the superseding title.

You know how stereotyped military officers are rarely associated with subtlety, conviviality, eloquence and intelligence; AND associated with aloofness, brute & misanthrope instead? In a similar vein, I believe most Alhajis are ONLY exclusively associated with a high level of spiritual supremacy – throwing into utter insignificance all they have done in other non-spiritual phases of their lives.

So, for the next ten weeks (or until I get bored), I will create a hipster, serialized list of Alhajis in Nigeria’s history – contemporary and otherwise, that we should know more about. Please note that this list does not celebrate goodness, it will just throw into sharp relief aspects, achievements and deeds of the lives of some Alhajis that were somewhat obscure. When you see some unscrupulous elements in there, do not abuse my mother. She’s innocent in all this.
People who have Universities named after them are just not hipster enough to make this list (sorry Alhaji Ahmadu Bello University).

This series is inspired by the death of Alhaji Maitama Sule, whose name rang a bell, but I never appreciated the sheer extent of his might and I had always thought of him as just another Alhaji. This list will right some of those wrongs. It is only proper that we start with him.

Watch this space!

@Captaincue