Adieu, Aisha Lemu

As I logged in to my twitter account, the first news that popped up on the screen of my tablet was the sorrowful demise of Hajiya Bridget Aisha Lemu. A British-born author who converted to Islam in 1961, Lemu’s tireless work for Islam cannot be overestimated. As a teacher at the School for Arabic Studies (SAS), her meritorious contribution to Islamic scholarship deserves to be eulogised by all and sundry.

What made Aisha Lemu educationally different from her contemporaries was her ability to write and publish many books on Islamic Religious Knowledge. Her books are the best reference for secondary school students. Her series are the ones presently used in most of our secondary schools.

Considering her enormous and memorable contributions to Islamic education, I urge the President Muhammadu Buhari government to initiate a process to immortalise her. One of our educational institutions could be renamed in memory of Aisha Lemu.

Lemu conceptualised Islamic knowledge at various levels in line with a newly introduced curriculum. Her students cut across the length and breadth of Nigeria. Her books are in different series, which simplify the concept of Islamic Studies for our respective students. They serve as a guide to students in preparing for various senior school certificate examinations.

Instructively, most examination bodies use Aisha Lemu’s threebook series in setting examination questions for students.

We pray that death would be a relief to her. We pray that her books would lighten up her Qabr (grave). Lastly, may Aljannatul-Firdaus be her final abode.