Taiwo “Tai” Solarin was a Nigerian educator, social critic, and author who, in 1952, established the first secular school in Nigeria, the famous Mayflower School at Ikenne in Ogun State.
Born on August 20, 1922, at Ikenne-Remo, he and his twin sister, Caroline Kehinde, were the only children of their parents, Daniel Solarin, a drummer, farmer, and palm wine tapper, and Rebecca, his wife.
Tai along the trajectories of his life became an avowed atheist, whose special clothing style inspired some people to describe him as a “village bizarre” rather than as the renowned intellectual he truly was.
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Early education
Solarin had his early education at St James School, Iperu-Remo for three months, and Wesley School, Ogere-Remo from 1927 to 1929. He later went to Otapete Methodist Primary School in Ilesha, Osun State from 1930 to1931 where he obtained his Standard Six certificate.
Tai, as he was popularly called, enrolled at Wesley College in Ibadan, Oyo State for his Higher Elementary (Grade Two) Teacher’s Certificate from 1933 to 1936.
Education career
After completing his grade two certificate examination, Solarin taught at the Methodist Primary Schools in Ago Iwoye and Sagamu in Ogun State from 1937 to 1941. Besides, he served as a typist at the Nigeria Customs Office.
In May 1942, Solarin went to England as a volunteer in the British Royal Air Force during World War II, where he was trained to become a navigator.
After his discharge in April 1945 from the Force, he enrolled at the University of Manchester in 1946, and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in History and Geography in 1949.
He earned a postgraduate diploma in education degree at the University of London’s Institute of Education in 1950,.
Thereafter, he taught Yoruba as an assistant lecturer from 1950 to 1951 at the School of Oriental and African Studies, before relocating to Nigeria in 1951.
The same year, he got married to Sheila Mary Tuer in Manchester, England on September 14, 1951, and they had two children, a boy and a girl.
On arrival from England, Solarin was immediately appointed the new principal of Molusi College in Ijebu-Igbo, Ogun State, from 1952 to 1955.
Due to a disagreement with Molusi College’s governing body on religious ideology, he resigned. As the head of the school, he ordered that copies of the Songs of Praise used by the students be confiscated and that if the students would not compose their own songs, then there would be no more singing in the school.
This led to the students creating the melodious Molusian, an unorthodox hymn book that discarded songs that called on God to help people rely on hard work.
The Molusi College’s authority was displeased with his action, which led to the parties parting ways in January 1955. On leaving the Molusi College, Solarin opened Mayflower School, Ikenne, the first secular school in Nigeria, in partnership with his wife.
He opened Mayflower Junior School in 1959 and served as its principal for 20 years. Solarin retired in 1976 and established the Students’ Second Home in 1977, a boarding house that still serves over 2,000 students from the three public high schools in Ikenne town.
Writing trajectory
Solarin’s writing trajectory saw him become a regular columnist for Daily Times and Nigerian Tribune, in 1958 and 1967 respectively.
He routinely wrote over thirty articles a year and is said to be the only known Nigerian columnist to have had a continuously running column for over 20 years.
As a columnist, he persistently accused the Nigerian military government and the church of corruption.
Moreover, he published several books, including Towards Nigeria’s Moral Self-Government, Thinking With You, A Message for Young Nigerians, Timeless Tai, and To Mother With Love.
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Social critic
Solarin in 1979 adopted “battle dress” after his visit to densely populated China where he discovered that almost 100 percent Chinese children were in school as against less than 25 percent in Nigeria.
In protest, he swore to only appear in public in a pupil’s school uniform of khaki shorts, short-sleeved shirts, and a “knowledge is light” cap pending when the subsequent government would address the issue of sending every Nigerian child to school.
His criticism became more fervent during Shehu Shagari’s government. Every Sunday, he would go to Campus Square in Lagos, which he later renamed Freedom Square, to abuse the administration. In March 1984, during the Buhari-Idiagbon regime, he was arrested and incarcerated at Abeokuta Prisons for “acts prejudicial to state security” for 18 months.
Awards
Solarin received several awards and recognition. In 1971 he was awarded an honorary doctorate degree in literature by Alma College, Michigan.
In November 1995, the National Universities Commission of Nigeria formerly recognised the Tai Solarin University of Education in Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State, as the first specialised university of education in Nigeria.
The Lagos State government also recognised him with the establishment of the Tai Solarin Hospitals in Mushin and Apapa, the Tai Solarin Memorial School in Amuwo-Odofin, and a statue of himself at Sabo in Yaba
Death
He died at the age of 72 on June 27, 1994, in the town of Ikenne, Ogun State. However, before his death, he wrote an inscription on his tombstone which reads: “Here lies Tai Solarin, who lived and died for humanity.”
