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Institute presents three books for Bala
Usman’s 15th Memorial Anniversary
By Norma Perchonok
THE Yusufu Bala Usman Institute
is commemorating the 15th Memorial
Anniversary of Dr Bala Usman,
a noted historian and committed patriot
by celebrating his life and his brilliant
intellectual work as contained in
three of his most important books
which are being presented to the public
in new editions. The ideas contained
in these works are, if possible,
even more relevant today than when
they were first written, and they comprise
an invaluable legacy for present
and future generations.
FOR THE LIBERATION OF NIGERIA.
This book, first published in 1978,
originally sold over 10,000 copies. It
contains 30 essays and lectures that
Dr. Usman delivered between 1969 to
1978. They cover topics such as:
Some Fundamental Problems of Contemporary
Nigeria; The Direction of
Nigeria: Structure, Ideology and the
Constitution; Nigeria’s African Policy;
Nigerian Universities and Intellectual
Self-Reliance and The Struggle in
the South: Angola., Mozambique and
the Future.
The new edition of this work has been
enhanced by a Foreword written by Dr.
Olusegun Osoba, the Chairman of the
Yusufu Bala Usman Institute. Dr. Osoba
is one of Dr. Usman’s oldest and
closest friends and collaborators. When
both of them served on the Constitutional
Drafting Committee, set up by
General Murtala Muhmmed to write
a new constitution for a democratic Nigeria,
they disagreed with the trend
of discussion of the majority of the
members and together they produced
the Minority Report and Draft Con-
The Foreword, together
with the original text
provide a broad and
perceptive appreciation
of the issue of manipulation
of religion
which is at the heart of
the problem of Nigerian
unity
stitution for the Federal Republic of
Nigeria, 1967, a work which has had
wide-ranging impact since then on any
discussion of the issues around the
Nigerian constitution.
NIGERIA AGAINST THE IMF: THE
HOME MARKET STRATEGY.
This book comprises essays on the
subject of the Nigerian economy, such
as Understanding and Resolving the
Current Economic Crisis; The Structure
of the Nigerian Economy and the
Real Meaning of Structural Adjustment;
What Exactly is the Problem?
For Whom is the Solution? among others.
The new Foreword to this book was
written by Mike Kwanashie, Professor
of Economics at Ahmadu Bello Univer-
•Dr. Usman
sity and former Vice Chancellor of Veritas
University, Abuja. Professor Kwanashie
is an Associate of the Yusufu
Bala Usman Institute. He is a renowned
economist with wide experience
both in and outside of academia.
He is a long-time associate of Dr. Usman
and worked with him on many
projects over the years. His very important
Foreword provides an updated
assessment of Dr. Usman’s conception
about the Nigerian economy and
demonstrates how prescient Usman’s
ideas were and how relevant they are
to the present economic situation in
Nigeria.
THE MANIPULATION OF RELI-
GION IN NIGERIA, 1977-1987.
First published in 1987, this work
broke new ground in its examination
of a critically important issue in Nigeria
– how religion is manipulated
to serve the interests of a class of people
who use religion to obscure and
cover up their real purpose of dividing
the country and protecting their
material interest at the expense of the
generality of the Nigerian people.
The substantial Foreword to this
work was contributed by Professor
Usman A. Tar, who is one of the Directors
of the Yusufu Bala Usman Institute.
He is an Endowed Professor
of Defence and Security Studies at the
Nigerian Defence Academy, Kaduna
and has published widely in Nigerian
and International books and journals.
His Forward brings up to date
some of the themes touched upon by
Dr. Usman and presents them in a
geographical and historical perspective.
The Foreword, together with the
original text provide a broad and perceptive
appreciation of the issue of
manipulation of religion which is at
the heart of the problem of Nigerian
unity.
There is no doubt that these three
books by Yusufu Bala Usman are essential
reading for anyone who seeks
a deeper understanding of the multifarious
problems facing Nigeria today.
•Perchonok is Director at the
Yusuf Bala Usman Institute.