Over nine years after his demise, a consummate writer and journalist, M.J Suleiman Ege, who followed the tapestry of the life of A.T, is out with 180-page book titled: A Hero And A Mission Aborted.
His sudden death in an auto crash along Abuja-Lokoja road on June 10, 2006 shook the land and brought with it, the closure of a beautiful era in Ebiraland.
Suleiman Ege chronicles not only the life and time of A.T in the book, but also the environment into which he was born and in which he flourished as a civil servant, as a political iroko tree and as a dynamic leader.
The author starts, in chapter one, by narrating his first meeting with the late politician in his Lagos GRA residence, along with another friend of his, and how such meeting snowballed into A.T being touted as running mate to Olusegun Obasanjo in the 1999 Presidential election and how at the same time, he (A.T) had thrown the towel into the ring to contest the Kogi state governorship election, none of which actually materialized. As a matter of fact, the author goes beyond the conventional narration to offer pieces of advice, in page 10, on how political leaders, who are often prey to deceitful aides, should “strive to live above rumour,” which he said, late A.T discovered early enough.
The author actually brought out the major qualities of late A.T, saying in page 16: “he remains a leader whose spirit of giving exceeded his person…A selfless man who gave wealth freely to any who crossed his path in need…He enriched those around him with power, money and influence much to his own disadvantage and comfort. He was much misrepresented sometimes, by the same people he so trusted or empowered and so enriched while alive. But in death, his mission became clearer. He grew so large that a replacement is yet to be found nearly ten years on…”
After the first chapter which is all about the author’s encounter with the late politician, the second chapter falls into the conventional narration: about his birth, circumstances of his birth, his early life, the clan he belonged to, the family tree and so on.
The subsequent chapters, upto seven are analysis of the summation in chapter one: his crisis with associates and rivals, enemies made and enemies inherited, his political career, his political philosophy, his position on power shift or power rotation in Kogi state politics and so on.
From chapter eight, the author veers off into the political and geographical history of Ebira and Kogi state, interspersing the pages with newspaper cuttings on the political runs, around Kogi state.
In the epilogue, the author rounds up by taking a look at the destiny, superstition or death in A.T Ahmed’s political goal even as he ends the book, on page 175, with a tribute he (the author) had earlier written, titled: “A.T Ahmed: A Selfless Service To An Ungrateful Generation?”
The narration in the 180-page book speaks well about the clear thinking of the author. In fact, the language used is simple, effective with a great deal of professionalism.
As a matter of fact, the author displayed excellent mastery of English; mainly flawless and attractive.
It is never surprising when it is realized that Suleiman Ege is a world-class communications and journalism professional with over 28 years standing. He holds a second-class upper Degree in Mass Communications from the University of Lagos and Masters Degree in Communications and Policy Studies from the prestigious City University in London.
The book, which is the subject of this treatise, has its defects, the most transparent one is the very poor quality of the final product. The quality of the pictures is below standard as are also the quality of the printed words.
As a matter of fact, the writings on the newspaper cutting are so tiny and hazy that they obviously couldn’t have been made to be read, because they are not readable.
Also, the arrangement of chapter and sub-chapter lacks professional touch. In fact, any work being done on A.T Ahmed doesn’t need to be rushed: doesn’t need to be haphazardly done, knowing that the late political sage loved quality. In fact, his personal status requires, at all times, even in death, quality.
However, in all, the book is worth the effort, after all, it is what the author writes about the late politician that the readers would take away.
Lovers of A.T Ahmed, and even those who did not admire him for whatever reason, being human, as well as the bystanders, would gain a lot, not only from the life and time of this politician, but through him, the life itself, in this book. This is saying that every lover of history, of life and living, needs to own and read this unique book. Or you may only hear the narration from second-hand point that is no exactly the original one. So, do not miss the opportunity of the originality! [myad]
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