Aklilu was a voracious reader and a fierce debater, brilliant political scientist and an artist, a student of philosophy indeed. His understanding and knowledge of the political economy of his era was so deep that most politicians hesitated to talk after his presentation. He had an uncanny ability to connect with his audience when he took the stage. His friends and foes (cadres) alike admired him for his intellect. He was on his way to greatness, on his way to the halls of the finest learning institutions. Aklilu developed a love for books at an early age and was biblically literate.
When he was in elementary school, he begged our parents to purchase a bible for him to read and they did. He then bought an English version of the bible when he was in junior high. He read them all. He was fluent in the English language and that is what probably helped him get acquainted with American and European tourists who visited Axum. Whenever he received money from his friends in the West, Aklilu spent significant amount of the gift from his friends on books. He was a frequent visitor of the tiny library in Axum where he spent countless hours reading from open to close.
Aklilu, excelled not only in social studies but also in mathematics and the sciences. He was always one of the top ranking students in Axum and later in Mekelle. He once told his classmates in his Math class that the teacher did the calculation wrong. His classmates encouraged Aklilu to correct the teacher’s mistakes. The teacher then allowed Aklilu to get up and do the math, step by step, on the blackboard and he told his students afterwards that he was proud to have such an extremely talented and outstanding student. In fact, his average score in Mathematics was 100% in 10th grade, a perfect score, and a rare occurrence achieved only by a fraction of students anywhere in the world.
He was one of select few students who traveled to Asmara to take an entrance exam into the acclaimed General Wingate School in Addis Ababa. After completing his first 8 years of education in Axum, his home town, he made a decision to go to Mekelle in search of better educators and better school. He travelled to Mekelle with his mother, Babi, and found out that the classes at Atse Yohannes were filled up and the school had to admit out- of- town students based on a lottery. Aklilu was lucky enough to be one of the winners and was admitted to the school.
Away from his parents and siblings, Aklilu continued to excel in his school work in Mekelle. He was one of the top students at Atse Yohannes Secondary School and an active member of TPLF.
After being absent from school the second half (second semester) of 1969 due to the unrest, Aklilu sat for the Ethiopian School Leaving Certificate Examination and passed with flying colors as expected. Unfortunately, Addis Ababa was a battle ground and young men and women were being slaughtered everywhere. My uncle, Tesfay Abadi, was one of the victims and lost his life in 1970 in Addis Ababa as a result. Aklilu, for obvious reasons, decided to forgo joining Addis Ababa University and became a Dugoma teacher and taught for a year in Zana, Tigray.
15 сен 2024
