“The Bus, The Books, and The Battle for Nigeria’s Brain”

By Donald Sunday

Abuja — The first sign that Saturday wasn’t business as usual came before the speeches. It was the buses.

University of Abuja vehicles, marked Yakubu Gowon University, snaked up the Mpape hills toward Mamman Vatsa Writers’ Village. Inside were students who had never set foot in a literary forum, some who had never seen a living author. The buses were paid for by Vice Chancellor Prof. Hakeem Babatunde Fawehinmi. That detail matters. Because on April 25, 2026, the Association of Nigerian Authors, Abuja Chapter, decided that access would not be a footnote. It would be the headline.

THE PREMISE: CERTIFICATES VS. COMPETENCE

By 1:00 PM, the Village was full. Writers. Professors. Secondary school poets clutching nervous stanzas. The theme was carved into the day like an indictment: The Role of Educational Institutions in Fostering Human Progress Through the Written Craft.

Arc. Chukwudi Eze, FANA, Chairman of ANA Abuja, opened with a line that landed like a gavel.

“At ANA Abuja, we remain committed to promoting a culture of reading, encouraging emerging voices, and sustaining literature as a vehicle for national and global development,” he said. “This platform continues to serve as a meeting point where ideas are exchanged, talents are discovered, and the future of our literary and intellectual heritage is actively shaped.”

Translation: Nigerian schools are graduating paper, not people. ANA Abuja came to change the assignment.

THE DOCTOR WHO PRESCRIBED WRITING

The special guest, Prof. Hakeem Babatunde Fawehinmi, is a medical doctor. That was the first myth he dismantled.

“Writing is not limited to English and Literature departments,” he told the hall. “It is a fundamental competency for all professions. Science. Engineering. Medicine.”

He delivered a diagnosis of Nigeria’s education system. Too much worship of certificates. Too many examination halls. Too few libraries. “We have allowed a true culture of reading to decline,” he said. “That is a difficult truth.”

Then he wrote a prescription. UniAbuja, now Yakubu Gowon University, would strengthen its library. Preserve Achebe and Soyinka. Formally partner with ANA Abuja on literary festivals, competitions, and reading programs.

“African writers must tell their own stories in their own voices,” Prof. Fawehinmi said. “A well-crafted sentence has the power to change the world.”

For that, and for the buses, Arc. Eze announced a new literary prize in the VC’s honour. In Nigeria, people are usually honoured for titles. On Saturday, a man was honoured for transportation.

THE PANEL: WHERE AI MET ANCESTRY

Lady Ejiro Umukoro, award-winning author and founder of LightRay! Media, Books, and Literary Society, moderated the dialogue. Her panel was a triad of intellectual weight: Prof. Udenta O. Udenta, renowned writer; Prof. Hauwa Imam, scholar; Prof. Vicky Sylvester, literary critic.

They did not debate whether literature matters. They debated whether Nigeria remembers how to use it.

Prof. Udenta called AI a “miracle that mimics everything” and warned of “cognitive deficiency.” His fix was analog: “Advanced nations are returning to the hard work of reading physical books to consolidate the human world.” He praised Prof. Fawehinmi’s open-door policy and “competence over friendship” as the only foundation for progress.

Prof. Sylvester framed storytelling as civic infrastructure. Prof. Imam positioned literature as the keeper of cultural identity. The message was unanimous. Returning to hard work in reading and writing is essential to avoid mental erosion caused by digital shortcuts.

THE TWINS WHO ANSWERED THE QUESTION

If the adults were the theory, the Adelaja twins were the evidence.

Taiwo Mary and Kehinde Martha, 13, walked to the front of the hall and handed the VC their second published books. The Smart Girl. The Unfortunate Woman. They had met former President Obasanjo before. On Saturday they met the point of ANA’s mentorship.

This is what happens when you replace certificate celebration with craft. You get 13-year-olds with bibliographies.

THE MIC: WHERE THE COUNTRY SPOKE

The open mic contest turned the Village into a courthouse.

Osinu Queenchristabel put Integrity on trial. Frances Keju testified that It Is Borrowed (Our Lives). Raheela Ray Mmahi, writing as Raywrite, cross-examined the national grid with Life with NEPA.

Ifeanyi Onyinye emerged overall winner. Other exceptional voices included Ohere Naomi, Ohiani Rodiyatulallah, Francis, Osino Queen-Christabel, and Emmanuella Adeniyi-Dabnak from Nigerian Tulip International Colleges, Marvelous Prospect Int’l Academy, Flourish Academy, and Nigerian Turkish American Academy.

Awards for literacy excellence followed. Cash prizes for poetry and prose. The subtext was clear: Nigeria’s next constitution might be drafted by someone who won an open mic at 16.

THE STUDENTS: QUESTIONS WITHOUT FILTERS

The Q&A session dropped pretence.

“What is one mistake freshers make in their first semester?”
“Besides JAMB cut-off, what other criteria select UniAbuja applicants?”
“What can be done about lecturers demanding payment to aid exam malpractice?”

Prof. Fawehinmi, Prof. Udenta, Prof. Sylvester, and Arc. Eze answered directly. No panels. No deflections. The VC reiterated merit, open-door access, and institutional integrity. For once, students were not told to “write it in a suggestion box.” They were told to write it, period.

THE CLOSING ARGUMENT

After 3:00 PM, there was refreshment. Light music. But Lady Ejiro Umukoro saved the thesis for her closing interview.

“The integrity of society hinges on the quality of its educators,” she said. “Unqualified personnel in academic institutions cause a disservice to society. Developing future leaders requires merit-based education and a nurturing environment to foster critical thinking.”

She called for institutional integrity and mentors who provide a healthy, professional environment for students to grow. “Without that,” she said, “you cannot build a sophisticated society.”

WHY THIS ROOM MATTERED

April 25 at Mamman Vatsa Writers’ Village was not a literary event. It was a policy correction.

A VC who buys buses instead of billboards. A 13-year-old with two books. Professors who say “read physical books” in the age of ChatGPT. Teenagers who perform Life with NEPA and then ask how to dismantle exam malpractice.

ANA Abuja’s chairman called it a “meeting point.” The day proved it was a turning point.

THE LIGHTRAY! BOTTOM LINE

Nigeria has spent decades graduating students who can pass exams but cannot draft a petition to fix their street. On Saturday, the Association of Nigerian Authors, Abuja Chapter, staged an intervention.

They brought the library back to the centre of the campus. They put a pen in the hand of a medical doctor and a mic in the hand of a 13-year-old. They told a country addicted to certificates that the real accreditation is competence.

The buses went back down the hill that evening. The students inside were not the same ones who came up.

Because somebody finally told them: A certificate gets you into the room. But only the written craft tells the room what to do.

Full interview with ANA live on NTA on “Educators as National Infrastructure” airs Sunday and Monday on LightRay! Media. For partnerships: contactlightraymedia@gmail.com.