The former presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Mr Peter Obi, said the Federal Government is denying universities in the country the opportunity for open dialogue and constructive engagement.
Obi, who said his scheduled lecture at Obafemi Awolowo University on Saturday, April 25, was cancelled at the eleventh hour by the university authorities, said that it was an isolated incident.
According to him, the invitation for the lecture was extended to him “several months ago,” and adequate preparations were made only for it to be cancelled on the day of the lecture.
He said he was at the university at 9 am prompt to deliver the keynote lecture, before proceeding to Ibadan for the opposition parties’ political summit scheduled to commence at 12 noon, but “regrettably, I received the news that the event would no longer be held in the university as planned.
Obi said this was not incidental, as he had experienced such cancellations in the past.
“It is important to state clearly that this has now happened more than ten times,” he stated, recalling that an annual lecture at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, organised by the family of former vice chancellor of the university, Prof. Frank Ndili, which he was to deliver, was cancelled on the scheduled date by the university authority.
“It points to a troubling pattern that should concern all well-meaning Nigerians,” Obi said.
According to him, this is beyond merely his personal inconveniences, but points to the kind of environment the nation is nurturing in its future leaders.
“Universities are meant to be centres of learning, open dialogue, and the free exchange of ideas,” he stated, adding that when platforms for constructive engagement are repeatedly constrained, it reflects a worrying shift away from these ideals.
The former presidential candidate said he has had successful engagements across the world, where he has had the privilege to speak and interact freely with students and scholars in respected institutions.
“In the past 24 months, I have delivered lectures in notable universities globally, including Oxford University, Cambridge University, Harvard University, Yale University, Princeton University, Chicago University, University of Pennsylvania, Imperial College, to name a few.
“Those environments continue to demonstrate openness to dialogue, critical thinking, and shared learning, values that should equally define our own institutions,” he stated.
He wondered what kind of nation those in authority are building if spaces meant for intellectual engagement were gradually shrinking, adding that a country’s progress is anchored on its ability to encourage knowledge, debate, and the contest of ideas, not restrict them.
“Nigeria must work towards becoming a place where ideas thrive, where knowledge is shared without fear, and where our institutions uphold the principles they were established to protect,” he demanded.
