Nosiru Onibon Sends Message To Tinubu On 72nd Birthday

President Tinubu turns 72 today.
Nosiru Onibon has sent a hopeful birthday message to the president.
The message centers around Nigerians and their leaders returning to God as a nation.

Eko Hot Blog reports that a former Deputy Vice Chancellor of the Lagos State University of Education (LASUED), Associate Professor Nosiru Onibon, has urged President Bola Tinubu and other Nigerian leaders to return to God for divine wisdom and guidance amid economic and security challenges across Nigeria.

He made the plea on Friday in his congratulatory message to the president.

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Tinubu, who opted for a low-key birthday celebration, turned 72 on Friday.

Celebrating the Nigerian leader, Onibon acknowledged his “renewed sincere intention and purpose” to make decisions and institute policies “that will eventually take the country out of the hood.”

The former LASUED DVC, who noted that many challenges confronting Nigeria have defied several known theories, expressed belief that “only sincere and deliberate return” to God for guidance can help Tinubu and his lieutenants to turn the country around positively.

Onibon noted that the nation has reached a stage in its history, where the president and other leaders at different levels of government and their agencies will “sincerely return to the almighty Allah for divine wisdom and guidance.”

CELEBRATING PBAT AT 72

As-salaam alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakaatuHu,

I would like to use this medium to wish the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu (PBAT) a happy birthday and pray for him more fruitful years on earth in good health and sound mind. Aameen.

Sir, as you add another year today, I humbly like to APPRECIATE your sincere acknowledgement of the HARDSHIP in the country. This, you have done in both your inaugural and 2024 New Year addresses as well as in the directed low-key celebration of your birthday in appreciation of the sober state of the Nation. The first lady, your children and some of your true lovers like the Fuji maestro Wasiu Ayinde have also differently acknowledged same and appealed for patience with the promise that things will get better in Nigeria.

For me, such open acknowledgement by a sitting President is a demonstration of a renewed sincere intention and purpose which is expected to propel deliberate decisions and policies that will eventually take the country out of the hood. One would observe the change in your body language in recent days.

A number of challenges confront us today as people and a Nation, and they are defying many known theories from Harvard, Cambridge and the likes.

I however believe only sincere and deliberate return to God for guidance can help the President, his lieutenants and all of us. We seem to have paid much lip-service to religiosity even as a leading most religious and prayerful people in the world. We bow down so many times in prayers, expecting miracles for years without corresponding faithfulness and righteousness.

In the spirit of Ramadan and just concluded Lent, I would like to remind PBAT of his personal acknowledgement of God’s supreme power to give guidance when human capacity is exhausted as in his inaugural address thus:

“I stand before you honoured to assume the sacred mandate you have given me. My love for this nation is abiding. My confident in its people, unwavering. And my faith in God almighty, absolute. I know that His hand shall provide the needed MORAL strength and clarity of purpose in those instances when we seem to have reached the limits of our human capacity”.

Sir, I believe that we have reached a stage, in the history of our Nation, where the President and other leaders at our different arms and levels of government and their agencies will sincerely return to the almighty Allah for divine wisdom and guidance. The Prophet (SAW) is reported to have said: “God consciousness is the beginning of Wisdom”.

We are at a stage when leadership positions should not be seen as mere chieftaincy titles but a position of responsibility and service to the people. The Prophet (SAW) is again reported to have said: “A leader of a people is their servant”.

The President may therefore wish to be reminded that what the almighty Allah proposes for any leader to achieve success includes the followings:

1. Absolute Faithfulness in His supreme invisible being and power “…whoever is God conscious shall be given the way out, and shall be given sustenance from where he never expects” Q65:2-3

2. Sincere Intention and Purpose behind all decisions and policy directions. The Prophet (SAW) said: “All actions are judged by intentions…” .

3. Sense of Accountability, that he should see leadership as trust and shall be made accountable to his action and inaction here and in the hereafter “…let every soul consider what he has done, be God conscious, for He knows all that you do”. Q59:18. The Prophet said: “You are all shepherd and shall be questioned as to how you rear your sheep”

4. Self-discipline and prudence, that extravagance is devilish and He hates the extravagant person. “…verily, the extravagant are brothers of Satan…” Q17:27

5. Obedience to God and the Law of the land, that all must “obey Allah, His messenger and the leaders, if your situation goes wrong, return to Allah and His messenger if you believe in God…” Q4:59. Leaders are divinely instructed to enforce the laws of Allah and that of the land.

6. Justice in all ramifications, that “…if you are to govern, govern with justice…” Q4:58 and “…let not your hatred for a people prevents you from being just, be just because it is next to godliness” Q5:8.

Finally, I pray PBAT and his lieutenants receive the divine guidance, the required knowledge and wisdom that will enable them rebuild the already destroyed pillars of hope for the present and future generations of Nigerians. Aameen thumma aameen.

Happy birthday to his excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.