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From Godwin Tsa, Abuja
The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Brig Gen Mohamed Marwa (retd), has urged Nigerians to remember always that the country’s diversity is a gift and a trust to be safeguarded by all.
Marwa delivered the keynote address at the public presentation of the book Buni Boy, written by the late legal luminary Niyi Ayoola-Daniels, in Abuja. According to him, the gathering’s significance lay in its theme of unity and strength through diversity — a core part of Nigeria’s identity. “To many people, the author’s narrative may seem distant, almost unreal, as if drawn from another world. Yet those of us who grew up in the 1960s know it as lived truth. The experience captured in the narrative mirrors the country we once walked through with unguarded hearts.”
Marwa remarked that the story reminded him of a period when people showed greater kindness daily. He said, “I am not here to retell the story, for it stands strong on its own. Instead, I will reflect on its core theme, to remind Nigerians that our diversity is not a burden but a gift and a trust we must safeguard.”
He shared personal experiences about unity in diversity, recounting his teenage years at the Nigeria Military School, Zaria — a school for all ethnic groups — where pupils saw themselves as kin, regardless of background. “Whether you speak Hausa, Yoruba or Igbo, we regarded ourselves as kin. Our teachers reflected the same broad mix… We didn’t see our Commandant as a Yoruba man. We saw a Nigerian, a man with whom we share identity.”
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Recalling his childhood across several Nigerian cities, and his 30 years in the army, Marwa emphasised the value of interethnic bonds: “Living in different sociocultural settings taught me early that people of other tongues and traditions are still my own… Intermarriage and close fellowship pushed us to look past ethnic lines and stand together.” Marwa said he has always embraced Nigeria’s diversity in private and professional life, holding friendships and chieftaincy titles across many ethnicities, and a family reflecting the nation’s mixture.
He recalled serving as Military Administrator of Lagos State and the trust he received from Lagosians, despite circumstances at the federal level. He noted that, even under pressure to prevent Senator Bola Tinubu from emerging as governor, he ensured a free and fair election. “The rest today is history,” he said.
Marwa acknowledged Nigeria’s challenges stemming from mismanagement of diversity, but stressed these “cannot justify any idea of tearing the nation apart,” instead urging for repairs to fault lines and greater inclusion.
Marwa commended Mrs Leticia Ayoola-Daniels for keeping her late husband’s memory alive, and praised the values immortalised in Buni Boy and the Buni Yadi Foundation.
