Marwa, Awomolo, Akinseye-George, Others Seek Preservation of Nigeria’s Strength in Diversity 

Alex Enumah in Abuja

Eminent Nigerians including the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Brig-Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd), Chief Adegboyega Awomolo, SAN, President of the Center for Socio-Legal Studies (CSLS), Prof. Yemi Akinseye-George, SAN, and others have called for the preservation of Nigeria’s “unity in diversity”.

Marwa, a former Military Administrator of Lagos State and the legal luminaries gave the charge against the backdrop of current challenges confronting the country.

They spoke over the weekend in Abuja, during the public presentation of the book: Buni Boy, written by late legal criminal justice expert, Mr. Niyi Ayoola-Daniels.

The Guest Speaker, Marwa, who spoke on the subject Unity/Strength in Nigeria’s Diversity, said the book launching has presented yet another opportunity to amplify the message.

Noting that the book speaks to the “unity and strength woven through our diversity as Nigerians”, the former military administrator, stated that to many people, the author’s narrative may seem distant, almost unreal, as if drawn from another world.

“Yet those of us who grew up in the 1960s know it as lived truth. The experience captured in the narrative mirrors the country we once walked through with unguarded hearts.

“I have long been an advocate of unity in diversity and of the strength that rises from it. The Nigeria of my youth understood its own diversity, even in the troubled days of the 1960s when the civil war raged through this country”, he said.

While recalling his teenage years at the Nigeria Military School, (NMS) Zaria, where he stated that the pupils came from diverse ethnic backgrounds, Marwa pointed out that it was never a school for northern boys alone.

“It was a school for all ethnic groups in Nigeria. Whether you speak Hausa, Yoruba or Igbo, we regarded ourselves as kin. Our teachers reflected the same broad mix.

“Before attending NMS, however, I had my primary education across four cities: Zaria, Enugu, Abeokuta, and Lagos. This was the result of my father’s mobile life as a soldier.

“Living in different sociocultural settings taught me early that people of other tongues and traditions are still my own. That truth has stayed with me ever since.

“On a personal note, my life has taught me that the diversity of this country enriches us. It sharpens our understanding of one another.

“It strengthens the fabric of our shared existence. It unites far more than it divides, whatever the voices of doubt may say today”, he added.

Awomolo, while dissecting the book, said the book was more than a chronicle of one man’s journey but that which brought to bear the complexity of the Nigerian cultural fabrics.

“The book invites us to embrace value of unity, empathy and mutual respect.

“As we celebrate this remarkable publication, we should reflect and confront injustice in order to build a just society,” The learned silk said.

The book reviewer, Akinseye-George, SAN, said Niyi’s book was a highly inspiring literature and not fiction.

“Fewer people out of the country’s larger population, according to the reviewer, are on the Internet, spewing wrong narratives that threaten the unity of the country.

“Going forward, those who believe in Nigeria should speak out and say no to disintegration. That was what the Buni Boy narratives were all about.

“I hereby recommend the book to the general public, seat of power, boardroom, classroom, universities and other citadel of learnings”, the senior lawyer stated.

In a welcome address earlier, the widow of the deceased, Mrs. Leticia Ayoola-Daniels, described the publication as not just a book but a literature.

“It is a homecoming of memories, courage, and a strength that never fails.

“We are celebrating not just a book but literature, and that storytelling can transform a generation”, she said.

Oluwatobi Ayoola-Daniels, who read the citation of the author, said his late father believed that Nigeria’s strength lies in its diversity adding that, the conviction came from a life-changing experience he had as a young man in 1983, which he later captured in the book, Buni Boy and his movie already scripted and copyrighted “Buni Boy, Rams to the Slaughter”.

According to him, later Ayoola-Daniels founded the Buni Yadi Foundation (BYF) to support displaced and underserved communities.

Through this foundation, he fed families in IDP camps, provided medical care and life-saving surgeries, supported boys in remand homes, and awarded scholarships that changed the trajectories of young lives.

“Because justice and fairness mattered deeply to him, he paid fines to help release inmates who couldn’t afford freedom, and supported legal access for juveniles in borstal homes, giving children a chance to rebuild their lives with dignity.

“Through all these acts, quiet, consistent, and deeply compassionate, my father showed us what patriotism truly looks like. He proved that one person, guided by empathy and conviction, can make a lasting difference”, he said.