The news that Tonye Patrick Cole had decided to go back to school was initially received with mixed emotions. Nobody could understand why a man accomplished in virtually everything related to him would subject himself to classes and assignments and the other elements of formal Western education. It has been a while, and folks still have no clue. In the meantime, the centrepiece to the narrative is not holding back.
According to insiders, Tonye Cole has fully been assimilated into the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru, Jos, Plateau State, and has begun to make progress in his short course. In the few weeks that Cole has worn his school bag, he has reportedly brushed up on his basics and will soon undergo the main course. Even knowing this, folks are still scratching their heads to guess Cole’s underlying intention. But this is simplicity itself—the man wants to educate himself.
To those who don’t know, Cole is neither illiterate nor semi-literate. With Honours in Architecture from the University of Lagos and another from the Universidade de Brasília, Cole can walk as proudly as is permissible. How else could he have built a fierce public reputation over the years?
Besides his political ambition, Cole’s business motions are something worth pondering. Certainly, a former Group Executive Director of Sahara Group, a business empire that has duplicated itself in over 35 countries of the world, has enough self-awareness? Thus, if such a person goes the length of seeking instruction in a humble college in Jos, it is unlikely that he intends to take over the institution. He just wants to educate himself.
But the doubts cannot be helped. To think that the same ivory tower that has been spurned in recent years for mass-producing helpless school leavers would attract one as accomplished and erudite as Tonye Patrick Cole. In any case, the man has settled down, is keeping a low profile at NIPSS, and gradually moving towards his goal.
