An open letter to Ustaz Mahjoub Mohd Salih

Hello Ustaz Mahgoub;

With a heavy heart, I wish to offer you, the staff and the readership of Alayam my heartiest condolence on the untimely departure of Prof. Abdrahman AbuZayd. May his geneous soul rest in eternal peace.

I know first hand that he was closely associated with Alayam since his early years at U.K. He was indeed one of the new breed of writers whose ideas had generated a great resonance in our country. His famous psydo-name as A. AbuZayd became a hallmark for brilliance in journalistic writing. The late AbuZayd was a man with profound knowledge in history and philosphy. More importantly, he was a man of great energies. For him duty had always been the order of the day. I was greatly honored to have know him from close proximaty during his years at the University of Juba.

He and the late Prof. Samani were the real builders of this monument of higher education. Without their vision and comittment the mere idea of a University in the Southern Sudan would have been unthinkable. AbuZayd shouldered the brunnt of making the University of Juba an enviable institution of higher learning in the Sudan. Being self-denying as he was, AbuZayd never claimed braging rights for his accomplishments.

His years at the Secretariat for Higher Education were most productive. His love and his religious comitment to the lesss fortunate areas in Sudan inspired him to turn into reality the dreams of building viable universities in the most unthinkable places. AbuZayd has built for himself so many monuments that for ever will be attached to his name. Omdurman Alahliya was one of them. It is most unfortunate he was forced to distance himself from his brain-child. He was saddened by his uncermonial departure from Alahliya for many years thereafter.

I hope his faithful associates and all those who are endowed with a sense of fairness would reinstate his name in a fitting manner to that institution. At this juncture, I should hasten to complement Vice Chancellor Prof. Mohd Ahmed Khalifa and his staff and the University council for giving the deceased an honrable farewell and burial. Now his name should be confered on one of the University programs, awards or institutions. Hundreds of students and their families are profoundly indebted to this great patriot. The University of Juba likewise should be nudged to follow suit. If these two institutions are not going to accord him the honor and accolade he deserves then who would?

Ustaz Mahgoub;

I know that you, Prof. Mohd Omer Beshir and Prof. AbuZayd were kindreds. I hope you would find the time to reflect on the life and legacy of the late Prof. Abdrahman. Your readership has always revered you for your candidness and wisdom. Now is the time for those who appreciate the accomplishmenst of AbuZayd to come through.

Once again, thank you very much for your time. With my utmost respect,

Sincerely,