Stop Renaming Our Universities—Build New ones or name upcoming ones Instead!
By Joshua Joshua Chinedu
The recent renaming of the University of Maiduguri to Muhammadu Buhari University is not just controversial,it’s misguided.
Why do we keep renaming long-standing institutions instead of building new ones to honor our leaders? A university that has served generations, built its identity, and carved out global recognition should not be reduced to a political souvenir.
🔴 University of Ife became Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU): decades later, many still refer to it by its original name. The change caused confusion and diluted its brand in the global academic space.
🔴 University of Lagos was nearly renamed Moshood Abiola University in 2012, and the public outrage was so intense that the idea was scrapped. Why? Because names carry legacies, and legacies shouldn’t be rewritten for political appeasement.
🔴 Now, University of Maiduguri, a northern stronghold of academic excellence, is being renamed after a former president whose leadership remains a topic of national debate? This isn’t legacy building,it’s identity theft.
The recent renaming of the University of Maiduguri to Muhammadu Buhari University is another disturbing example of this trend.
A university is not a political trophy. It is a center of learning, research, innovation, and national unity. Its name should reflect timeless values, cultural heritage, or intellectual legacy—not serve as a tribute to controversial or partisan figures whose legacies are still contested.
Why are we so quick to immortalize leaders whose actions in office left millions of Nigerians divided, impoverished, or unheard? Was there a referendum? Did the academic community and stakeholders agree to this change?
This is not about hatred or disrespect for any individual,but about principle. Leaders should earn historical reverence through their legacy, not force it through state instruments. True greatness doesn’t need buildings named after it.
Let’s protect the sanctity of our institutions. Let’s stop politicizing education.
Universities belong to the people, not to politicians.
Renaming does not add value—it erases it.
It undermines the decades of academic culture, alumni identity, and international recognition these institutions have worked hard to build.
🎓 Instead of renaming, build new universities, new research centers, or leadership academies. Let these reflect the ideals of any leader you wish to honor. That is how legacies are created,not by forcibly stamping names on age-old institutions.
This trend is not only unnecessary, it’s unfair to the scholars, alumni, and communities who have emotionally and academically invested in these institutions.
Let universities remain sacred grounds of learning, not political billboards.
#Education_not_Politics
#Joshua Chinedu
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