By Abdussamad Yahya Sufi
Dr. Muhammad Hashim Suleiman
Dr. Muhammad Hashim Suleiman, a Lecturer in the Department of Mass Communication at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, said he declined an invitation to the Kaduna meeting where "600 Senior Northern Academics" endorsed President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for 2027, warning that the fallout has put academics at risk of being branded partisan and targeted.
In a post on Facebook on Monday, 14/09/2026 and backed by two screenshots, Dr. Hashim said the fallout from the event has put many academics at risk of public scrutiny and criticism.
Dr. Hashim said he was "officially invited to attend the event in Kaduna that culminated in the eventual endorsement of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for second term."
He attached an invitation letter dated 10/09/2026 from the "Organizing Committee of the Interactive Session of the Senior Academics of Northern Nigeria."
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| Letter inviting senior academics to endorse Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid |
The letter, themed "Consolidating the Renewed Hope Agenda: Three Years of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's Achievements and the Road to 2027," listed two objectives: "to appraise the achievements of the present administration" and "to secure the endorsement and active support of the academic community for the re-election of Mr. President in the 2027 General Elections."
It added: "The purpose of the gathering is therefore not open-ended debate but mobilization. Attendance is entirely voluntary, and only colleagues who are favourably disposed to this objective are encouraged to attend."
A second screenshot showed the WhatsApp message conveying the letter: "Good afternoon, sir. Please see attached invitation letter to an upcoming interaction with the Special Assistant to the President on Political Matters, thank you."
The invite Dr. Hashim said he declined with a laughing emoji.
Dr. Hashim said he responded with a laughing emoji.
"I politely used a laughing emoji to decline the invitation. I declined because the intent was clear from the invitation, it is all about actively joining partisan politics in the name of being academics," he wrote.
He added: "Those that accepted the invite, went and endorsed the candidature of president Bola Ahmed Tinubu, did so within their freedom of association as enshrined in our constitution. Those of us that declined to attend also have reasons for what we did."
Aftermath
According to Dr. Hashim, "Many academic platforms across Northern Nigeria have been on fire since morning."
"I have received dozens of calls, WhatsApp messages, inboxes, tags and even jibes chiding 'Northern Nigerian Senior Academics' for being political sellouts (I don't even know what that means)," he said.
He agreed that "our actions, though freely done without breaking any law, tend to have multiple repercussions."
Dr. Hashim listed three consequences of the Kaduna declaration.
On safety, he said:
"The first discernable impact... is that the lives of many of us are now in danger because either truthfully or not, many a caller asked me about the ₦10 million to ₦15 million that each of us 'Senior Northern Nigerian Academics' were given during the meeting. Though, I tried my best to tell them about the likelihood of that narrative being lies but it seems the wider society has already made up its mind; money was shared."
On electoral duties, he warned:
"I fear for the life of any of us academics that would participate as INEC Ad Hoc staff in the forthcoming elections. Reason being simple that 'Senior Northern Nigerian Academics' have already become grossly partisan in the coming national elections. To the public, both the ones that declined and the ones that went for that declaration are one and same, at most, we are two faces of the same coin."
On institutional image, he added:
"That by that Kaduna declaration, the 'Senior Northern Nigerian Academics' have made it clear that our educational institutions are now with no any rancour despite the fact that even the person that read the declaration is a current serving Vice Chancellor whose university is not functional due to strike by academics from his university."
He also stated:
"I, Hashim Muhammad Suleiman, PhD, a senior academic from Northern Nigeria is neither an endorser of any political contestant nor an attendee of the Kaduna Declaration event."
He further said:
"However, I make it bold to say that the actions of those '600 Senior Northern Nigerian Academics' is now a watershed moment that will certainly change the way academics behave and are seen by many Nigerians."
Dr. Hashim said he decided to speak out to clarify his position and distance himself from the Kaduna declaration as controversy followed the meeting.