Dr. T. B. Jayah-Great humanist

AL HAJ DR. T. B. JAYAH ORATION 2011 delivered by A. Javid Yusuf, Ex- Principal, Zahira College, Colombo and Sri Lanka's Former Ambassador to Saudi Arabia at the Zahira College auditorium

Anyone associated with Zahira College, Colombo knows that it was during his period as Principal that Zahira took root as the premier Muslim Educational Institution in the country.

Yet Jayah's services were multifaceted and impacted on the Muslim community in more ways than one. The short time at my disposal today will not suffice to do justice to Dr. Jayah the educationist, the politician or the diplomat.

But his work and vision has great relevance to the future of the Muslim community in Sri Lanka and provide us with many lessons from which we can benefit.

Dr. Jayah was a great humanist. By nature he was mild mannered, poised, serene and calm. He was never given to outbursts of temper, however grave the provocation. His soft exterior masked an iron will and steadfastness of purpose which gave him the strength to face the challenges that he faced during his life of dedicated service.

Being a human being he must have had his faults as anyone of us do. He had his share of detractors both at Zahira and in his political life but his outstanding achievements are an eloquent testimony to his impressive efforts notwithstanding those who pointed fingers at him.

Educated at St. Thomas College, Mt. Lavinia, Jayah took to teaching at a very early age and had the opportunity of working at Dharmaraja College Kandy, Prince of Wales Moratuwa and finally at Ananda College Colombo.

At the very young age of 24, he revealed his interest in the Educational progress of his community when he contributed an article to the Ceylon Muslim Review on the subject “Ceylon Muslims and English education”. He drew attention in this article to the importance of English education both because of the fact that it was the State language in Sri Lanka at the time as well as because of his belief that it was the key to the world's store house of knowledge.

In 1921 at the age of 31, Jayah was invited to become Principal of Zahira by the School's Manager N.H.M. Abdul Cader.

The fact that he consented to take over the School at a time when many had written off the institution was a measure of the man and his readiness to accept a challenge if it was for a worthy cause. When Jayah took over the School 29 years after it was founded the number of students on roll was only 59.

Many years later he described the situation at Zahira at the time he took over in the following words: “the outlook was dismal. Six teachers and fifty nine students, hardly any furniture worth the name, with a building just large enough for a primary school used at night by loafers and undesirables, with unattractive surroundings and twenty or thirty yards from the buildings, thickets and shrubs regarded by the public as the rendezvous of the denizens of the underworld relieved only by the majesty of the mosque”.

Despite the bleak outlook he refused to accede to the request of his Principal at Ananda College Mr. P. de S. Kularatne not to accept the Principalship of Zahira College.

Modern education

Undaunted by the enormity of his task, Jayah quickly set about working to put Zahira on a sound footing. He took several steps to motivate parents to send their children to Zahira. He allayed the fears of many who during that time did not want their children to study in English, by reorganizing the curriculum to teach English parallely with Islamic studies. Once Muslim parents were convinced that modern education was being imparted without compromising Islamic teachings they began to respond positively. Within a short period of three years, he managed to increase the number of students on roll from 59 to 650.

In order to build Zahira, Jayah gathered around him a dedicated and gifted team that was multi-ethnic in character. He obtained the services of Mr. Weeramantry, the father of the internationally renowned jurist Justice Christy Weeramantry as his Vice Principal. Weeramantry took over a large part of the administrative burden allowing Jayah the time to formulate plans for the progress of the school as well as to carry out his larger duties in the national arena.

He also had the benefit of the services of Mr. A. S. Abdul Cader, the first Muslim trained teacher who functioned as Headmaster of the Primary Section. Headmaster Abdul Cader as he came to be known played no small part in helping to swell the numbers of students by visiting the homes of potential parents and convincing them of the need to educate their children by enrolling them at Zahira.

There were many others such as Mr. & Mrs. N. P. Pillai, Mr. Rauf Pasha, Mr. Natesa Iyer, Mr. Roy de Mel, Mr. Nallathamby, Mr. Yesudian and Mr. Wijeratne, to name just a few who dedicatedly served Zahira under Jayah.

Jayah's tenure at Zahira was however not without its ups and downs. But he was equal to the task and not one to be discouraged by setbacks. He had the ability to convert such challenges into opportunities that resulted in further growth for the school.

The first big challenge to the growth of the school was the great economic depression of the 1930s which resulted in parents undergoing great financial stress.

Jayah rose to the occasion and reduced the fees for some students and completely removed the fees in the case of the more deserving students thus helping to avert a disaster of no small magnitude.

The second big test arose due to the fear of a Japanese invasion during the second World War when the School was commandeered to house the Army. Jayah used the opportunity to open branches of Zahira College in Alutgama, Gampola, Slave Island, Puttalam and Matale.

He thus gave a fillip to the pursuit of modern education by the Muslims in other parts of the country.

The life of Jayah is inextricably intertwined with the history of Zahira. His was a mission to ignite the torch of learning among the Muslims of Colombo which in turn had a ripple effect on the rest of the community in other parts of the country. Being a keen student of history, he used Islamic history as an inspirational tool to goad his students to greater heights. He himself used to take Islamic history classes where he put to excellent use the teaching skills which had earlier earned him a reputation of being a fascinating teacher of classics.

While the School began to take root in the educational landscape of the country and flourish both in the academic sphere as well as in sports, he gave life and meaning to his celebrated goal of making Zahira “the radiating centre of Islamic thought and culture” by constantly exhorting his wards to drink deep at the fountains of inspiration that constitute the rich cultural legacy that Muslims are heir too.

Today in the 21st century when there is a great thirst for education and a surfeit of educational opportunities, we may not realize the enormity of the struggle that Jayah and his band of dedicated teachers had to wage in order to awaken the Muslims from their educational slumber. His leadership skills were inspirational thus motivating his colleagues to strain every sinew towards the task at hand.

He was firm with his staff, yet gently guiding them towards the high standards that he had set for Zahira. The teachers were so loyal to Zahira that they voluntarily gave up part of their salaries during the days of the economic depression of the 1930s.

While it was undoubtedly Jayah's visionary zeal and his leadership that put Zahira on the map, one cannot forget to a significant factor that facilitated Jayah's achievements.

This was his empowerment by his employer the Maradana Mosque Committee (the owners of Zahira College) who gave him a free hand to run the school. He also had the support of great benefactors like N.D.H. Abdul Ghaffoor, P. B. Umbichy and several others who generously provided funds for the infrastructure of the School.

Educational progress

Today the educational progress of the Muslim community in Sri Lanka leaves much to be desired. When the community is struggling to keep pace educationally with the demands of modern society, we are failing in our efforts to provide adequate opportunities to our children to become useful and competent citizens.

One of the main reasons for our lagging behind in education is our failure to empower the Principals of our schools. While it was difficult to identify Principal material during the times of Jayah and Azeez, today we have a wealth of qualified and competent personnel who can take charge of the Muslim schools scattered round the country. What is holding them back in taking these schools to greater heights is their disempowerment through various forms of interference, political or otherwise. \

The key to the future of educational progress in the country is the empowerment of Principals. With increased empowerment must come increased accountability. Today's Principals lack both empowerment and accountability which is one of the main reasons for the unsatisfactory state of Muslim education. The success of Jayah and later Azeez during the period of what has come to be described as the golden age of Zahira is living proof of the need to empower our Principals.

By building Zahira as a model school for the rest of the community to follow, Jayah revolutionized the approach of the Muslims to education. His setting up of branches of Zahira all over the country was a furtherance of this objective. But Jayah also indirectly contributed to the furtherance of Muslim education in later days when he identified the freshly passed out graduate from Aligarh University in India Badiuddin Mahmud to head Gampola Zahira. He carefully guided and nurtured “Badi” as he was later known through stormy early days as Principal of Gampola Zahira. Eventually, Badiuddin Mahmud as Minister of Education became one of the greatest benefactors of Muslim Education in Sri Lanka and contributed in no small measure to a surge in the Muslim community's pursuit of education in the latter half of the twentieth century.

When the time came to depart from Zahira, to shoulder bigger responsibilities at the national level, Jayah did not simply walk away. He took it upon himself to search for someone to take his place. To use his own words Jayah ‘spent some anxious times’ until he found A. M. A. Azeez who in turn proved to be a worthy successor to Jayah.

Zahira was so close to Jayah's heart that he continued to follow developments at Zahira even after he became a Minister and subsequently High Commissioner to Pakistan.

Multi tasking is something very few people can do successfully. In Jayah's case he not only multi tasked but he handled several heavy responsibilities at the same time for a lengthy period of time and very effectively at that. Three years after becoming Principal of Zahira, he became a member of the Legislative Council and continued to adorn the legislature throughout his tenure at Zahira.

Yet he was not found wanting in any of his duties. As steadfastly as he gave leadership to Zahira he vigorously espoused the cause of Muslims in the legislature while at the same time serving on a multitude of legislative committees.

As stated earlier Jayah's achievements can be credited to his own efforts and his own visionary example but he also had the benefit of an enabling environment which allowed him to realize his full potential to serve the Muslim community and the country. N.H.M. Abdul Cader who was the Manager of Zahira was also a Member of the Legislative Council at the time Jayah was to be appointed to the Legislative Council. He as Jayah's employer could very well have prevented the latter from entering the Legislature by denying him permission to do so. Yet Abdul Cader did not have any fear that Jayah would share the limelight with him by becoming a Member of the Legislature and displayed great magnanimity in not standing in Jayah's way.

The Muslim community benefitted greatly by Jayah's entry into politics. He strongly articulated Muslim concerns in the Legislature while at the same time not failing to pay attention to national issues. For example he strongly espoused the need for Muslim Government servants to be granted 2 hours leave for Jumma prayers and also pushed for reform in the Muslim Marriage Ordinance. At the same time he associated the Muslims with the other communities by vigorously supporting the demand for national independence. This is in complete contrast to some Muslim politicians of today who display a ghetto mentality and refuse to take stands on National issues on the basis that “it does not affect us”.

Muslim rights

Muslims and indeed other minorities often ask for an equitable share in the affairs of Government. Often political leaders who shout the loudest about the need for the Muslim community to be given its due place forget the truism that one must act like a shareholder to be treated like one.

These leaders articulation of Muslim rights seems more a vehicle for the advancement of their political and personal goals rather than a genuine commitment to the community. In the process they forget or are incapable of realizing that the Muslim community is part and parcel of the larger Sri Lankan nation. Hence their indifference to national issues and pre-occupation only with parochial matters. Not so Jayah. He was equally at ease talking of matters of national interest as he was raising issues of special concern to the Muslims. His principled approach to politics and his integrity-both political and personal- ensured that both he and his community would be treated with respect.

This teaches us another very important lesson. Unless and until the Muslim community produces leaders who are respected by the other communities for their political and personal integrity, the community will suffer by default. Yet another feature of Jayah's sterling qualities of leadership was that he was never one to sit on the fence when faced with an issue that had to be met head on. When Muslims the world over formed the Khilafat movement as a response to the dismantling of the Ottoman Empire by the British, he was in the forefront organizing a campaign in Sri Lanka in support of the Khilafat movement undaunted by the fact that it would invoke the wrath of the colonial rulers of the time.

When the movement for the creation of Pakistan was gathering momentum, Jayah initially had reservations about the wisdom of partitioning India. However once he was convinced he unreservedly and actively involved himself in supporting such a move by organizing meetings and participating in the campaign. This he did despite the fact that by taking such a stand he risked alienating the Indian Tamils and Indian Muslims living in his Colombo Central constituency who had supported him in large numbers at the Elections.

When Sri Lanka established relations with the newly created State of Pakistan, Jayah became the natural choice to be Sri Lanka's first High Commissioner to that country. Jayah was already well-known in Pakistan and his selection as our country's representative was well received. His efforts in Pakistan laid a solid foundation for the excellent relations enjoyed by the two countries to this date.

His popularity in Pakistan was so great that he was given the opportunity by the Sri Lankan government to serve in that country for a record seven years.

The government of Pakistan honoured him by offering him citizenship of that country. But as much as he had grown to love the newly formed country, Jayah was first and foremost a Sri Lankan and his loyalty to the country of his birth did not allow him to accept the honour.

To sum up it would not be wrong to say that Jayah was not only a visionary educationist and a great Muslim political leader, but he was equally a national hero who served his country well.