Veteran broadcaster and retired Director of Public/Corporate Affairs, Voice of Nigeria, Lagos, Alhaji AbdurRazaq AbdusSalaam, otherwise known as Abu Umar Al-Faruq, has paid a heartfelt tribute to Alhaji Usman Abolarin, who returned to his Creator on Saturday, April 1st, 2025. Until his death, Alhaji Abolarin was a staff of Al-Hikmah University, Ilorin, Kwara State. Read the tribute below:
I left the I’itikaf venue on the 28th of Ramadhan although without a plan to travel to Aran-Orin, the following day. I had scheduled everything around Offin-Ile, Igbogbo in Ikorodu where I live.
After Adhkar on 29th Ramadhan, I went back to bed with a plan to wake up and conclude my Qiraatul Qur’an. It wasn’t to be. Around 9.00am, I received the call that changed the course of action for days to come. “Baba Muslimah ti siwo ise,” Masud announced.
The message was so ordinary to me that I wanted to continue sleeping. “I hope you heard me. He would be buried today,” Masud continued. Then my brain woke up.
Four days earlier, Masud had called to alert me about the worsening condition of my brother’s health and the need for me to come to Ilorin immediately after Ramadhan.
However, about a month earlier, my brother called me and asked why I had not come to see him. I explained my challenge and he responded: “Se mio wa ni ri ojure ni? – Does this mean I won’t see your face?” I smiled and promised him that I will soon be around.
He was right; he was never to see my face again. He was gone forever. I thought I could make the Janazah with the hope to request that I wanted to see his face. The burial was after Salatul Asr, but I didn’t arrive until close to midnight.
I have since read three different pieces about his life, but none satisfied my knowledge of him. I therefore decided to add my knowledge and experience of my late brother, Alhaji Usman Adegboyega Abolarin.
While I was growing up, ‘Boda Sunmonu’ was quite popular for he led Muslim youths from several homes into the Young Muslims’ Association – YMA which later became YMAN. We all rallied around him and once he moved, we followed. He was a key factor in mobilising the Muslim youths across Aran-Orin. His name soon gained prominence with the non-Muslims as the ringleader. His leader, late Alhaji Ismail Oyeyipo Olohungbebe was Kaduna based. My brother and his team represented the engine of the organisation – YMAN.
It was alleged that he had a powerful concussion which he used to administer to us and it was responsible for our boldness. Far from that, he rather nurtured us to read the Qur’an regularly and to learn to complete it every month. Himself an avid reader of the Qur’an, by the time of his death, he was completing the Qur’an ten times every Ramadhan. Death took him on the seventh despite ill health.
My first experience of my brother was while struggling to leave Fatima Community College. I did examination in several schools of choice but I had no admission letter from any of the schools. Anxiously, I left school on a Monday and came home with my two colleagues both of whom are late now – Muhammad Salami and Kadiri Salami.
We were passing through the front of the house when he came out. “AbdurRazaq, why are you not in school? What are you doing at home?” he queried. I explained our plight, we were tired of Fatima Community College but we were unable to secure any alternative school. I mentioned Government Secondary School Omu Aran as one of the schools the three of us did examination but no result. He then ordered us to come inside. He took a clean sheet of paper and wrote a note with his ever-beautiful handwriting.
‘Give this to the principal of Government Secondary School, Omu-Aran,’ he directed. We were so happy.
We went to Omu-Aran and trekked to the school. I was the spokesperson. When I mentioned that we were from Usman Abolarin, Mr. R. B. Balogun, collected the note with smile, the next moment he was saying ‘Usman Abolarin, my friend.’ He repeated the phrase severally. I was wondering how my brother could be a friend of this old man, for R. B. Balogun was likely older than my father.
He read the note still smiling then he looked at us and spoke. ‘We no longer have space.’ He paused staring at us. Then he continued: ‘But I can’t say no to my friend. Therefore, since you participated in our examination, I will take the best of you.’ That was how I became a student at Government Secondary School, Omu-Aran.
While I was in the school, Kwara State Muslim Students’ Society had its conference at AbdulAzeez Atta Memorial College, Okene. At the conference, my brother – the Chairman of the MSSN Kwara State then handed over to Brother Ishaq Oloyede – (now Professor).
When I finished from Government Secondary School, Omu-Aran with only four credits, I was advised to apply for OND/HND. My brother refused. He explained that the discrimination was damning. He narrated his experience. Therefore, after his two siblings in Kaduna Polytechnic, he decreed that none of us would go to Polytechnic again.
I then prepared to retake my papers. We started searching for schools and three days to the deadline, we found none. I returned home to complain. We were four. He gave us a note to the Principal of Ansarul Islam Secondary School, Ijomu-Oro. The principal was said to be at Sanmora. We went to Sanmora.
The principal was not in but the wife welcomed us. She gave us food. When the Principal came, he read the note and promised to assist anyone with three credits minimum. Thus, three of us qualified and joined the school. My experience here and with R. B. Balogun showed me that my brother easily made friends and ensured that the relationship was preserved.
There was an incident of immense importance to me in growing my faith and showing my late brother as a rallying point. Alhaji Usman Adegboyega Abolarin was in his final year at School of Management and Vocation (M&V), Kwara State College of Technology. He was still Chairman of Kwara Area Unit of MSSN. A lecturer had complained that my brother was not regular in his class. It was a fact. The activities of MSSN made it inevitable for the leaders to miss classes. The lecturer promised that my brother would fail the examination. Alarmed, my brother came home and reported to my father who told him not to worry. “It is because Allah wanted to pass you miraculously.”
Trusting in Allah, he returned to school. There was a public lecture in Ilorin town attended by the late Shaikhul Islam, Baba Kamalideen Al-Adabiyy. The situation of the Chairman and his lecturer was reported. Shaikhul Islam also directed Alhaji Usman Adegboyega Abolarin to ignore the threat.
After examinations, the results came out and he told us that he was going to Ilorin to check the results. Ya Allah, a large number of brothers gathered in the mosque towards Zuhr. After Salatuz Zuhr, we did not disperse, we were waiting for his arrival. Shortly, he arrived. Without addressing us, he observed the Salat. Thereafter, he announced that he had graduated and was posted to the then Imo State. The late Alhaji AbdulGhaneeyy Afolayan switched on the public address system of the mosque and started a waka song indicating that ‘Usman Abolarin ti paasi – Usman Abolarin has passed.’
Of interest was the lecturer who promised to fail him. After collecting his letter, he came out and saw the lecturer.
“Abolarin, what are you doing here,” the lecturer queried.
“I just collected my letter and I have been posted to Imo State.”
“Then, there is an error somewhere because you failed my paper. Come to my office to confirm it.” They both walked to the office of the lecturer. He brought out the cardboard on which the results were entered. He traced my brother’s name to his paper and saw ‘B’. The lecturer was shocked. My brother left him with his mouth agape. In essence, he thought he failed Alhaji Usman Abolarin but alas, it was a pass mark.
From that incident, I learnt the important lesson that you cannot be a loser because you serve Allah. The incident strengthened our faith and confirmed Alhaji Usman Abolarin as a focus of activities. He served and returned. He became a teacher in several schools. During the period, his intellectual depth was revealed. He went to classes with short notes and held the classes spell bond.
By the time he moved to Ansarul Islam Secondary School, Ilorin, his house had become a sort of a rendezvous. I was in the School of Basic Studies, almost every weekend, I was back at home at Agbo-Oba in Ilorin. Often, I met Ismail Olawuyi, Olawumi Abolarin, the late Sidikatu Abolarin (later Sidikatu Ajiboye, after her marriage with AbdulAzeez Oluwole Ajiboye) and also Sherifah Abolarin occasionally.
From his meagre salary, he fed all of us. He farmed and did extra lessons to make ends meet. He never complained, he never grumbled even as his colleagues seemed to get better economically. He drank pap with us with nothing to support it and we ate other options at times, without meat or fish. His wife then got accustomed to the large family and she never grumbled.
He was outside Ilorin delivering a lecture when the news about the death of his first daughter came. The moment he saw Ismail arrive, he concluded the news in his mind, yet he continued and concluded the lecture.
For those of us who kept close to him, we drew a lot of inspiration from him. We were going to Ora – Igbomina, Osun State. The only available motor was the pickup car of Chief Raji Afolayan, the Eesa (Second in Rank) to the Alaran of Aran-Orin. We were to depart when we received a directive that of the two routes that entered Ora town, we should enter through one and exit through the other. Some people ran back but my brother led us and we went and returned safely.
We were having a public lecture at Ile-Oba in Aran Orin. Mid way, a dog ran into the centre of our circle and barked so strongly that its voice went through the microphone and the loudspeaker. Then the public address system collapsed. All efforts to revive it by Alhaji Usman Arigbabuwo failed, for the first time.
We got home, my father was waiting in front of the house on the top floor. He welcomed us and asked us about the dog that barked. We were surprised. He explained that the women of darkness were meeting and our loudspeaker was directly hitting them. They would love to cause mayhem, but Allah frustrated them. My father said he saw everything in his dream and woke up and waited for us to arrive safely. Then, the day we were going to Aiyedun (then Aiyekan). Most parents would not release their children and wards. Then a selected few led by my brother Alhaji Usman Abolarin went and returned safely.
I need not say more since this is not a book but a résumé. He left us a legacy of Faith and Hard Work. Therefore, we should continue to pray for his soul.
* Abu Umar Al-Faruq (AbdurRazaq AbdusSalaam Awayewaserere) was the first Amir of The Muslim Congress (TMC) and retired Director of Public/Cooperate Affairs, Voice of Nigeria, Lagos.
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