Unforgettable Eight Days in Maiduguri, Borno – The Home of Peace

By Prince Jibril ayu-Akpanim

Is your brow fizzled at the alias of Borno as Home of Peace?

Obviously it will because you refused to travel and see things first hand. But I did, two nights and three days to get to Maiduguri from Eket in Akwa Ibom state to participate in the National Qur’anic Recitation Competition.

Many peoples have moulded their perceptions from stories carved in the pages of tabloid and television screens about Maiduguri, the capital municipality of old North Eastern State, which later metamorphosed into Borno, Gongola states and currently the six North East geopolitical zone comprising Adamawa, Borno, Gombe, Jigawa, Taraba and Yobe state.

Ever heard of the Nubian empire?

Well, our history was tactically made irrelevant by foreign interests who would rather have us to study the exploit of Alexander of Greece, Julius Caesar of Rome and even the infamous Adolf Hitler of Germany.

Nubian empire was great for centuries and spread across Northern Africa straight to the Arabian peninsula.

Nubi is synonymous with Borno, a corrupted designation of the people of Nubi, Bor- Nu.

While many indigenous people in Nigeria enbraced Islam, the people of Borno were the only ones who were already muslims long before Islam arrived the present day Nigeria.

Maiduguri we learned was the centre of Islamic schools for the Recitation of the glorious Qur’an and students from as far as Morocco, Egypt and Yemen flocked into the city centre in search of knowledge.

It was therefore a home-coming sorted of, when the government of Prof. Babagana Zulum decided to host the entire country in 2025 National Qur’anic Recitation Competition from 12th December to 20th in Maiduguri.

Interestingly the edition marked the 40th anniversary of the National competition organized by the Centre for Islamic studies of the Uthman Dan Folio University Sokoto.

Why do Muslims compete in Quranic Recitation?

The answer is a profound truth that is beyond the belief of other faiths.

Allah the Almighty promised to protect His last revelation to mankind against distortions and corruption…Quran 15 : 9.

Unlike the previously revealed scriptures that was massively tampered with and corrupted…Jeremiah 8 vs 8.

Qur’anic Recitation Competition upheld the sanctity of the profound protection prophecy of the verses.

How so?

Each year, thousands of RECITERS have memorized the entire volume of the glorious Qur’an.

They undergo rigorous training in local and state Competitions before finalist are selected to represent their respective states in the National finals.

There is a category of Recitation where classical nuances must be made and scored.

Nuances like the involvement of unmistakable pronunciation of words and the length of prolonging or shortening vocal pitches.

It’s so technical that should a word be pronounced as bi instead of bih, the meaning is lost, and the reciter losses marks.

This technicality of Recitation made it impossible for anyone to smuggle into the Qur’anic verses any interpolation or twisted verses.

All over the world, millions of young Muslims, both males and females are experts in Qur’anic Recitation.

No religion can attempt to imitate this miraculous feat.

Should all the world faiths gather their scriptures and destroy, and are ask to reproduce the manuscripts again, no religion would have any text to rely upon except Muslims.

Because instantly, the reciters will bring back all the verses without a missing dot, words or sentences.

Allah is Great!

In Borno state, Sheik Muhammad Suleiman has combined children and grand children up to Eighty in numbers and they all memorized the Qur’an.

Now you see the beauty of National Qur’anic Recitation Competition, right? Right.

Many of us were expecting to see houses perched on desert or semi wilderness environment on arrival.

Undeniably, we too were fed with concocted media reports about Maiduguri and it wasn’t far from a city with bandits or extremists roaming the streets and out numbering normal citizens.

In fact I deliberately stared at people to see any signs of Boko Haram written on their faces but instead they will rush to shake hands with broad smiles on their faces.

The people of Maiduguri, aka Yerwa simply loves strangers and it shows.

They love smiling and exchanging greetings to even strangers.

Desert? Wrong!

Wilderness? Um-um!

Honestly, there are more trees with shady greenery in Maiduguri than any city in the Southern states of Nigeria.

And every morning, street sweepers are at work despite the early cold breezes keeping the fallen leaves and fruits of dongoyaro away.

Maiduguri is big, very big and the streets are wider than imagine with neat pedestrian pavements and street lights at night.

There are traffic lights in all intersections and surprisingly motorists are respectfully abiding by the traffic codes.

Throughout our stay, no one beats traffic lights, and I observed them keenly.

A new innovative approach is the model schools constructed in the city by Prof Zulum, every child would longed to be in school.

The scenery is breathtaking and that is how schools should be.

I learned Prof., Zulum built close to a hundred and Fifty of the model schools across the state, the likes are nowhere in Nigeria.

I guess the way Zulum is going, he might likely be at par with His Excellency Goodswill Akpabio, the current Senate President as the best Governor in the history of Nigeria infrastructural development.

Where are the extremists for goodness sake? I need to see one or hordes of them.

In gatherings, both in the restaurants and tea kiosks ( they love drinking tea..shai ) I made concerted efforts to inquire about the extremists.

The answer points towards one thing.

They were not happy that such thing be associated with their city.

They refer to the extremist in derogatory terms, ’ those idiots, useless criminals and fools ’ are in the forest and far local government areas.

Their countenance registered visible hatred they have in the heinous crimes commited by the extremist.

Ever ate grinded rice?

They call it Biky, a kind of garri popular in the Southern states.

It’s popular here and it goes with pepper soup and all kind of soup.

The regular National cuisine are also available.

In some part of the town, there are varieties of southern states delicacies and heavily patronised by the locals too.

I didn’t bother to visit, because I know that no matter how they cook, it won’t taste like ibibio cooking.

The distance between is too far away to have fresh condiments and seasonings that give Akwa Ibom unique expertise in exquisite cooking.

In a brief strolling in the neighbourhood of my hotel I saw things.

Giant fried grasshoppers (locusts) sold in a heap by the walkway, and a hand scooping is sold for a Hundred Naira and more.

The natives bought them and munched along.

One Mallam, not an indigene, told me that in the days before pesticides, swarms of locusts used to invade farmlands and made lives miserable for farmers.

And in their frustration, locusts were picked and consumed as revenge and that began the culture of the delicacy.

I wasn’t totally convinced, don’t be.

It’s like saying fish invaded Ibibio communities of old, took humans into the creeks and devoured them.

So we started eating fish in revenue.

The Maidugurians are very hospitable.

In fact someone brought fried ball of meats and distributed in sachets to all the attendance in the huge Muhammadu Indimi hall as his personal way of welcoming guest into the city.

Another person brought snacks twice a day throughout our stay outside LOC surplus food.

They are very moderate in almost everything, for instance, a distance that attracts between One Thousand Naira to One Thousand Five Hundred Naira is Two Hundred Naira by Keke fare.

Again if you missed your location, the keke rider will return the fare charged and assist you to board proper ride to your destination, no complaints, no screaming and insisting on his right.

The citizens also have exotic scent as they walked by.

Most of the perfumes that are adulterated and sold in Abuja and other cities are in its original forms here.

A drop will last for days and pocket friendly too.

The University of Maiduguri, venue for the competition is densely dotted with tall trees and one is tempted to reminisce on the Biblical, “the sun shalt never smite thee by day nor the moon by night.”

The local organising committee of the National event were exemplary in everything, courtesy of the state government that ostensibly gave them the mandate to host the Federation with top-class hospitality.

In his closing remarks, Prof Zulum capped it up with a sterling speech, emphasising that Borno is back among the comity of states and is safe, peaceful and ready to welcome the world in every aspect.

It wasn’t a political statement, but a clear testimony to the changing narrative of the state of Borno, the Home of Peace.

With Borno conquered, my quest to know all the states of Nigeria is fulfilling.

Thirty fours states tugged in safely and the Fct, only Adamawa and Taraba remains.

Prince Jibril writes this piece to appreciate the hospitable Yerwa and Akwa Ibom Council for Islamic Affairs who rallied support for the state to participate in the Competition.