The Making of a Hero out of Sen. Dino Melaye: By Atabo M Abubakar.

In the last few days,the media trended with news that Sen. Dino Melaye did not graduate from ABU and that even his results indicated he failed five Courses that could prevent him from graduating. Before i set the record straight,let me abreast you with some of my personal encounters with Dino Melaye in ABU.

MY PERSONAL ENCOUNTER WITH DINO MELAYE IN ABU ZARIA.
I and Dino Melaye were part of the delegation from ABU in 1998 to NANS Convention in Enugu. We slept in the same bus the first night we arrived Enugu.But in the morning when the convention became chaotic Dino disapeared from there and we only met when we managed to return to ABU. Some of us felt betrayed by Dino's action since our feeding and transport allowances were in his custody.From that day,I hated having anything to do with Dino.
Secondly,I was billed to ride on a horse at ABU/OAU Club procession to signal its Annual Week in January of 1999. I paid for the horse and the costume but,the shoes coudnt size me.So,I dashed to my hostel to get my own shoe for the ride. On my return,I was told that Dino had picked my costume and rode the horse for the procession.I ran after him and it took us serious browl to get my horse and costumes back from him. Our adversary escalated from that day.
Thirdly, my then Political God father in ABU and Dino's main adversary Sir Empero masterminded Dino's impeachement as the Geography Depatartmet President in 1998.So,when I was contesting for the post of Director of Social of the Faculty of Social Sciences in 1999,Dino saw it as a pay back time to make sure I loose the elections. Dino came in and gave maximum support to my opponents in the elections.But, I won with landslide and humiliated Dino's adversary.
In a nutshell, Dino and i were never friends or in good terms through out my personal encounter with him.
Now,back to the main issue of non graduation from ABU.
DINO MELAYE IN ABU ZARIA
For anyone that was in ABU between 1991 to 1999 surely knew Dino.Dino was very popular,lausy,impulsive,pocknosive and above all gatecrashed any event or place that he find himself. Anywhere you go around ABU main Campus,you are bound to meet Dino or his antics. May be to paint a picture of Dino in ABU,just look at his antics in the house of Representatives and the current Senate,then picture it in ABU environment.
ISSUE OF RESULTS AND CARRY OVERS
Dino was admitted in ABU in 1991,so he ought to have graduated in 1994 being a four years course.Unfortunately,ABU was engulfed into crisis between 1992 up to 1996.That was why Gen. Abacha appointed Gen. Mamman Kontagora as Sole Administrator to end the crisis and restructure the school. Part of the restructuring was to ensure all those victims of the crisis (of which wasnt fault of theirs) were adequately given soft landing to graduate. Thus, the school put in a policy of waiver of some Carried Over Courses for all those that over stayed. Dino and his mates benefited from that policy.
Secondly,I was part of the meeting with the then NANS President Philip Shuaibu ( who is now the Deputy Governor of Edo State) in 1999 when NANS demanded the restoration of Student Union Government in ABU.The then Dean Student Affairs Dr. Tanimu made recommendations to the then Vice Chancellor Prof. Abdullahi being that Dino and his likes must not be allowed to participate in Unionism and the only way to achieve that is to make sure they graduate that year since most of them have spent over seven years on four years courses.
After all those waivers and considerations,Dino Melaye graduated in 1999 with CGPA of 1.36. A result that everyone around Dino knew.
FOR THE RECORDS
It is worthy of note to state clearly here that ABU is not a University that anyone can claim to have graduated if he dindt.Had it been Dino did not pass through ABU he woudnt have spent four years in the House of Representatives between 2007-2011 without beeing detected. Not to even talk of beeing Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
For the avoidance of doubt,Dino Melaye was a bonafide graduate of Geography from Ahmadu Bello University Zaria 1999. He graduated along with his mates and before our own eyes.Even his adversaries back there in ABU cannot deny that fact.
CONCLUSIONS
For anyone to insinuate that Dino dindnt graduate from ABU in 1999 is as good as saying Obasanjo,Yar Adua,Jonathan have never ruled this country at one time or the other. To crown it all,the peddlers of this rumour are either ignorant,mischievous or at most making a hero out of Dino
I rest my case.
By
Atabo M Abubakar
21.03.2017