“I have always bellyached to no end over the poor visibility and recognition the late Sheikh (and his peers) enjoys in mainstream Nigerian media,” African journalist, Oladehinde Olawoyin, documents one of the best memorabilia for the Man of Markaz
From Babatunde Jose, described as ‘the legendary doyen’ of Nigerian journalism by the Guardian and for me the most consequential figure in Nigerian media history, through to Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, the JAMB helmsman, and everyone in-between, Markaz must have produced the highest number of (Yoruba) Muslim professionals across disciplines in the past century. In effect, in terms of dexterity of influence and longevity of human impact, aside Sheikh Kamaldeen Al-Adaby, very few Islamic scholars of Yoruba descent could have their names mentioned in the same sentence as Sheik Adam Abdullahi Al-Ilory in the whole of the region.
Despite his importance, and the immeasurable impact of his fountain of knowledge, located in Agege, I have always bellyached to no end over the poor visibility and recognition the late Sheikh (and his peers) enjoys in mainstream Nigerian media.
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And so it’s a tad heartwarming listening to this brilliant eulogy by Alh. Abdulsalam Abiodun (Saoty Arewa), perceptive songwriter and poet, in honour of Sheikh Adam. The recognition resonates not just because it has potential to open a bigger conversation about Shiekh Adam’s importance on bigger platforms, nor because Baba was and still is deserving of the beautiful lines and more. It’s important essentially because Saoty is by critical and popular acclaim the most important Yoruba Islamic songwriter of his generation.
Sheikh Adam’s importance and influence, visible in the numerous Markaz-esque Islamic institutions scattered across Nigeria and the borders of Benin Republic and beyond, remain significant even in the lives of Muslims who didn’t directly go through Markaz in Agege. The revered Sheikh was quite phenomenal in his spread of knowledge that if, like me, you had your Ibtidahi and Thanawy Classes anywhere in Lagos and across Yorubaland in the last five decades, you must have drank from Sheikh Adam’s river of knowledge. Why? Either your direct Alfa or his own Alfa, or his Alfa’s Alfa, must have gone through the long, long chain of Markaz and its products. My direct Ustaz, for instance, was a product of Daaru, but someway, almost all of the Daarus came as an offshoot of Markaz, our own being Sheikh Musa Yahaya Agboola’s in Amukoko.
To be sure, between when I had my Thanawy classes and now, I have had a shift in my conception of a number of things about the Deen and nature, including Sheikh Adam’s own philosophical thoughts on life and its complexities. For instance, I have had to disagree with many of the thoughts in his popular text, Fawakiu (which some rascals back in our Modrasah corrupted as Fawakiu Sokoto). But despite this concern, I have the most respect for Sheikh Adam, his progressive thoughts on interfaith coexistence, and the impact he has on generations of Muslims—-warts and all.
Saoty Arewa’s new album dedicated to Sheikh Adam, Ireti Mi, is rich in history as it is in wordplay, giving every proud Markaz product (and by-products like me!) a sense of pride. The long, long list had impressive names like the respected Sheikh Sulaiman Raji, Fatihu Akinsode, Shiekh Garba Akinola, the controversial Mufty of Ilorin, Sheikh Farouq Onikijipa, Sheikh Shazili Zambo, among others.
The inclusion of Yesaloonaka and Jaqmal in the roll call, for any perceptive observer, is in some way a marketing strategy. It also speaks to the centrality of these emerging voices as influencers within the bigger (social) media ecosystem. (Of course it provided loudmouths like Yahaya Gambari a bragging right and much-needed weapon to taunt ‘enemies’ like Saheed Shittu, Oniyawometa, et al).
In this age of mutual tension and religious intolerance, for me the most important legacy of Sheikh Adam would be his understanding of, and teachings around, the complexity of a society like ours, with focus on how Muslims can live peacefully with non-Muslims. He wasn’t perfect, but his imprint remains unmatched. And more that anything today, we need his messages of INCLUSION and Peaceful coexistence in a society being torn apart, albeit slowly, by, among others, infertile Wahabism.
Today, I salute Sheikh Abdullah Adam Al-Ilory and pray that Allah bless him and overlook his shortcomings. I also celebrate and recognise his products, by both biology and ideology—-most notably Sheikh Habeebulahi Al-Ilory—and the impact they continue to make in the society, warts and all.
And, to echo Saoty Arewa:
MoriKaz-y ni wa o,
Faari Adamo la je o!
