A visit to BLERF: Where stories live forever
By Uboho Bassey
IT has been three days, yet I still cannot get over the thrill of my visit to BLERF. This is one man’s dream that seems like a project only the most foresighted and gifted could conceive, embark upon, and actually bring to life—an achievement built on dedication and consistency, a story spanning several years.
Accompanied by Mr. Smart Eke, Clerk of the Navy Committee, Senate (NASS), we eased into the serene, tree lined environment where BLERF is ensconced in sleepy quiet.
The Biographical Legacy and Research Foundation (BLERF) is a one-stop resource centre for all information imaginable. Based in Abuja, and celebrated as Nigeria’s first online biographical databank, the foundation holds an astounding collection of about 2.5 million books and over five million documents. It is, without question, a storehouse of knowledge on virtually every topic: politics, music, history, travel, nations, governments, entertainment, and beyond.
Perhaps we should call Dr. Nyaknno Osso the keeper of stories and legacies, for in the hush embrace of this library, one is bound to find the most detailed and preserved information cache on all subjects.
Each shelf is a portal; each book, a doorway; each photo, a story on its own. Walking through many rooms and buildings stacked high with materials, I watched his face light up with memories so vast that I wondered how one person could be a reservoir of so much knowledge.
Dr. Nyaknno served as presidential aide to Nigeria’s former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, and was entrusted with the establishment of the first ever presidential library in Africa, “The President Olusegun Obasanjo Library, located in Abeokuta, Ogun State.
Widely travelled worldwide, he speaks with such simple grace that wisdom becomes a compass that navigates time, explores history, and wields perspective as stories unfurl.
We ended our visit with a copy of his book, Against All Odds, while also presenting six of my books to the library—The uncommon Housewife; The Unveiled Treasure; The Untameable Spirit; From Trauma to Triumph: Finding Liberty; Times and Seasons; and The Rising Sun; — a fitting exchange in a place where knowledge is not only both given and received, but also preserved.
As we stepped out of BLERF’s quiet yet powerful sanctuary, I realized that this was not just a library. It is a living monument. A guardian of memories. A treasury of Africa’s voices—past, present, and those still rising.
BLERF is more than shelves, photos, and documents; it is the heartbeat of our collective identity. Every display carries a fragment of who we are. Every collection safeguards what we must never forget. Our beginning, our journey, and our becoming.
And so, this is a call: To book lovers seeking worlds beyond their own,
to students craving clarity, to researchers, educators, policy-makers, and stakeholders,
to every curious mind yearning for depth and discovery—
Visit BLERF.
Step into its corridors and let curiosity unravel its treasures. Come to widen your knowledge, stir your imagination, and help preserve the stories that shape us.
For in BLERF, knowledge is not just stored; it is protected, honoured, and passed on.
