In Response to Abba’s Baseless Critique of Pantami’s Book -By Usama Abdullahi

I don’t understand why someone like Farouq Abba-whose command of the English language is as faulty as hell, would waste his time to kiss off Sheikh Pantami’s book titled “Skills Rather Than Just Degrees”. I’m pretty sure everyone who stumbles upon his criticism of the book would know that it’s such a ridiculous attempt to downplay the superbness of the book. To be honest, I find his criticism of the book very tasteless and insulting. To insist that a comma must precede ‘Skills’ before ‘Rather’ is to insist that the English language isn’t a complex one. Unknown to the faulfinder-Abba, putting a comma before ‘Rather’ is quite unnecessary.

It’s up to the author to decide weather to insert a comma or not. And the absence of a comma in the book’s title doesn’t invalidate the effectiveness of the book. Well, it’s obvious that the deluded critic, Abba, is plainly being too naive to conceive that idea. That being said, his understanding of grammatical rules is limited. So, we may wish to dismiss his critique as a misguided priority or some sort of attention-seeking thing. Abba has admitted by himself that he hasn’t yet read the book. But he’s quick to point out some “gaffes” in the book’s title. I guess he’s simply being hypocritical like he has always been when it comes to matters of great importance.

I’m amused that he ended up exposing his dumbness while trying to alter what’s already inalterable. I understand that there are a number of people who wrongly assume that the use of ‘just’ in the book’s title is shocking. Contrary to their misapprehension of the adverb ‘just’, it can be understood in a series of ways. We all know that ‘just’ is synonymous to ‘only.’ Therefore, there’s nothing to worry about in that title. It’s as simple as it seems. I however do not wish to denigrate Abba. I only wish to disagree with him.

He also characterised the art on the book’s cover as being “too basic”. I don’t know what he clearly meant by that. But, to think that way is to think that the earth should revolve around him alone. That the book’s painting is “too basic” doesn’t mean the book won’t be impactful as it’s expected to be. You can only imagine what the book has in store if you haven’t read it. A good brother and friend has shared the book with me via WhatsApp, and I have started reading it. It’ll be an interesting one.

In conclusion, the book is such a great masterpiece. It argues that having a degree doesn’t guarantee that a person possesses the necessary skills to succeed in a given position or industry. Moreover, it suggests that instead of sorely relying on academic achievements, employers should focus on individual’s (applicant’s) experience, practical knowledge and work-related skills because that determines how they will perform the job effectively. The truth is, having relevant skills is much more valuable than simply having academic qualifications. Isn’t it funny that this is the kind of book which Abba sought to dishonour?!

Usama Abdullahi is an Abuja-based writer. He can be reached via usamagayyi@gmail.com