Despite the fact that our country is plagued by corrupt leaders and people in power who have little or no regard for those they lead, there are still a lot of good people in this country and many of them have done things that will just make your heart melt. When you hear their stories, your faith in humanity will be restored because you know that as long as there is one such person, then there are more like them who are ready to do good for good's own sake.
I’ve read many posts already on this topic and a lot of Nigerians have mentioned really beautiful names, all of which I would have chosen personally. From Yar’Adua to Okonjo-Iweala and many more. So, I won’t talk about any of them even though I believe they deserve such an honor, I’ll instead bring my choice closer to home and speak it from a personal experience.
One person I would very much love to see gracing our naira note is my former Maths teacher from my secondary school days. I can’t remember his full name now, but we all called him Pastor Paul. He was a pastor and god-fearing man, but he didn’t allow that to come in the way of his teaching, the same way he didn’t allow the job to come in the way of his worship. He was somehow able to balance both of them seamlessly.
Pastor Paul was a guru when it comes to maths and he had this easy way to explain things that opened up the minds of even the least brilliant students. Thanks to him, so many people who didn’t like maths didn’t fail it.
I attended a government secondary school, and like every government school in Lagos, it has a chapel for Christian students and a mosque for Muslims. He took charge of the chapel and under his leadership, many students who ordinarily didn’t care about fellowship joined in. He just made everything fun and he was so easy to talk to.
One of his most startling traits was how humble he was. He never bragged and he never tried to be who he wasn’t. I remember one time in class he was teaching and a student asked a question that threw him off. For over fifteen minutes, he tried to solve it but it didn’t work. He had to stop and tell us that he couldn’t get it yet but he would have the correct one for us the next time we met.
First thing the next morning, even before our first period, he came and solved it perfectly on the board. He showed us what had stomped and confused him the previous day, there had been an error in the question. Anyone who solves maths regularly can tell you just how dangerous it can be to make a simple mistake when solving. That moment stood out for me, he didn’t try to hide the fact that he was finding it difficult, instead, he allowed us to see him struggle with it and in the end, conquer it. That was very inspiring.
I believe these were the reasons many of us in my set loved him so much. We knew he was just like us, unlike the teachers who tried to show that they were above us and above making mistakes. He was more than just a teacher and pastor, he was a daddy to us all.
The most remarkable feat this man did happened when we were in SS3 preparing for our final exams. This man took it upon himself to organize private lessons for us, early in the morning before assembly and after closing time every weekday. And then, on Saturdays, we had another class for about four hours. He also conducted a prayer and fasting for all of us, both Christians and Muslims alike. It was just six to three fasting and we broke it together. The Christians said their prayers and the Muslims said theirs as well.
It was an intense period for us because there was a lot of pressure from the school authorities. The previous set had performed woefully in the WAEC and they wanted us to change that image. So, we weren’t just doing these for ourselves, we were doing it for the school as well. So, with extra lessons and prayers and readings and more lessons and more readings… we wrote the WAEC and had one of the best results in the history of the school! All thanks to that one man!!
This is the reason I would never be able to forget him, no matter what. I lost contact with him, and I’ve been unable to get a hold of him since then. Last I heard of him, he was now a Principal and I was overjoyed by the news. He now had more power to make more impact on students. I hope he rises above that and even goes on to work in the government because someone like him will be ready to do what it takes to carry out his duties.
Even though he’s a pastor, he knows that nothing works just by praying. Equal action has to back it up, and he doesn’t lack in that department.
So, my dear friends, if I were to select someone to grace a naira note, it would most definitely be Pastor Paul. So maybe then the entire country will know just how good a man he is.
