“How Pius Are You?”

By: Deji Yesufu

Last week Wednesday, 13th March 2019, students and lecturers of the University of Ibadan had a processional walk in memory of the Prof. Pius Adesanmi who died in a plane crash in Ethiopia on the 9th of March this year. Pius Adesanmi had a Masters Degree in French from the University of Ibadan and he had since developed friendship with a number of people at the university. He was billed for a conference at the university this June; unfortunately the cold hands of death has cut short those plans now.

The procession began at the university’s general car park by the school’s main gate. Students, lecturers and well wishers, numbering about four hundred, walked from the car park to the Faculty of Arts – where Pius had obtained his degree. The procession later moved on to the Institute of African Studies, where a candle light walk was held in his memory. At the Faculty of Arts, people who knew Pius Adesanmi, spoke glowingly about his person. Students read from his essays and lecturers eulogized him. One particular statement, made by Prof. Remi Raji, a very close friend of Pius Adesanmi, forms the heading of my article today. Remi Raji, after giving a glowing tribute on Adesanmi, stating among other things that with the death of Pius Adesanmi a library has been burnt down, he went on to admonish his listeners by asking the question: “how Pius are you?”

Remi Raji made this statement to show in one hand that Pius Adesanmi was such an accomplished academic that other people could measure their own life accomplishment by his. At only 47 years of age, Pius’ works stood at a staggering height with other literary geniuses in the world. Thus Remi Raji asked “how Pius are you?” to remind us that we also could pursue great heights in life and accomplish great things.

Despite economic challenges that Pius Adesanmi had to grapple with while he was an undergraduate at the University of Ilorin (in one article, Pius wrote about how his mother sold her jewelleries so he could buy a required textbook for school), yet he came out with a first class degree in French. If a student would be “Pius” in life, he should never allow his economic circumstances deter his educational pursuit. One may not make a first class but one can achieve something worthwhile regardless of one’s economic circumstances. Those who claim not to be able to get an education because they lack resources are not being “Pius” at all. If a Pius Adesanmi can emerge from school at a point of near penury, everyone of us can get an education and emerge with good results. “How Pius Are You?”

At a memorial gathering held for Pius Adesanmi in Abuja, one of the people that attended was the ignominious Dino Melaye. The organizers of the event even allowed him to speak! Is it that no one realized how Pius Adesanmi castigated wasteful and unthoughtful politicians like Dino Melaye? Would Pius Adesanmi have supported a politician who spends all of his free law making time displaying his wealth on social media? There is nothing “Pius” about Dino Melaye and the organizers should have known that Pius Adesanmi would never have wished to be associated with folks like Dino.

Pius Adesanmi maintained a truism that Nigerian politicians are against the Nigerian masses getting quality education because they that if the people’s minds get enlightened they would not be available to be used as political thugs nor would they fall for the peanuts they give them at polling booths. Pius Adesanmi sought for Nigerians youths to get quality education; he believed that there was no greater wealth a person could possess than to have an enlightened mind. Pius spoke often about his father who was a secondary school principal and who taught him to read books that expanded his mind even as a child. Nigerian students would be “Pius” if they spent less time watching television and more time reading books that would enlighten their minds. “How Pius are Nigerian students?”

The kindness and generosity of Pius Adesanmi has been testified to by many Nigerians. Pius came from a middle class family who had to endure the economic crunch instilled on Nigerians by the corrupt military administrations that led Nigeria in his growing days. Because he knew what it means to be poor, he was quite generous with his resources, talents and time. Many have spoken of how he encouraged them to pursue further education in their fields of study. On the night of the memorial held at University of Ibadan, I met Mrs. Olutope Amudipe who told me that she reached Pius Adesanmi through Facebook inbox and he had encouraged her to pursue a Masters Degree at the African Studies. She eventually settled for Traditional African Medicine as a course and is almost completing her studies now. She never met him; they were billed to meet for the first time in June before the cold hands of death put an end to it all.

Since his death, so many people have published screenshots of their private conversations with Pius Adesanmi. At some point I began to wonder if the man had nothing else to do than counselling people online. Yet, he was a full time Professor with Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada. There he was the head of their African Studies unit. He was an editor with Saharareporters and other online news portals. And he kept being guest to hundreds of conferences around the world. One of which he was attending when he perished in a plane crash. Most people who knew Pius Adesanmi said he was always in a hurry. It was as if he knew his time was short; he sort to do so many things at the short time available for him. How Pius are we all in the use of our time? Do we realize that we would not be alive forever? One day would come and we would be dead. Would the world have anything to read about us? Shall we still be speaking through our letters, articles and books, even as Pius Adesanmi is doing today? How “Pius” are we really are?

As we mourn the untimely death of Prof. Pius Adesanmi we should realize that everyone of us can be a lot more productive with our time as Pius Adesanmi was. We can pursue knowledge and seek to enlighten the minds of people around us, particularly children to whom the future of this country belong – as Pius Adesanmi did. We can detest the sought of warped politics in Nigeria that Pius Adesanmi condemned all his life. We can choose to be good citizens and paint a good picture of Nigeria in the diaspora as Pius Adesanmi did. We all can be “Pius” in our own right.

May the memory of Pius Adesanmi remain blessed in the hearts of all who knew him. Amen.

Deji Yesufu is the author of the book Victor Banjo. He may be reached on newdejix@gmail.com

Source: http://mouthpiece.com.ng/how-pius-are-you/