Category: Campus Life

At 30, Mr Mike Okoye was adjudged the youngest state commissioner nationwide,  following his appointment as the Anambra State Commissioner for Budget and Planning in June 2016, under Governor Willie Obiano. Now at 33, Okoye is still the  Commissioner for Budget and Planning. Besides, he was one of the only 10 alumni of Atlantic Hall School bestowed with a ‘Distinguished Personality’ award as the school wrapped up activities for its 30th Anniversary last week. In this interview with HALIMA BALOGUN AND AJIFOWOWE OMOTOLABI, Okoye tells  youths not to underestimate their abilities, but rather challenge their future now.

 

Could you introduce yourself?

I am Mark Okoye, alumnus of Atlantic Hall School Class 2003. I am also the Commissioner for Budget and Planning in Anambra State.

At 30, you were the youngest government appointee in Nigeria. Did you buy your way through?

I never did. It’s just by dint of hardwork, passion and sacrifice.

At present, I’m 33 though. Interestingly, however, I’ve spent more than eight years in government. I got into government at 25 when I was working as an investment banker in Lagos.

So, how did your sojourn into politics begin?

It’s about my passion!

Ahead of my appointment, I had always yearned for a job that was much more impactful and fulfilling.  So, through my company, I started to support different states to help them raise money through the capital market. That was where I got the passion to serve.  I then started writing proposals to state governors and commissioners .

So when did you get the break?

I had a turning point when I met Donald Duke (former governor of Cross Rivers) who introduced me to my then governor, Mr Peter Obi and insisted that he (Obi) should hire me.

So during my first meeting with him, you know politicians’ approach to things. He had a brief chat with me. He asked me a few questions and directed me to send him my CV whenever I got to Lagos later. I then said “No Sir. I’m a young man and know what I want because I want to serve.  I have my CV right here with me’. I then handed over my CV to him. He first looked at me, then my CV and said no problem. So he started me off as a Senior Special Assistant on Investment. I officially started work in June 2012. So I worked with him during the last two years of his administration, helping him to drive some investments into the state.

And why did you not go with Obi when his tenure eventually expired?

The work I did for him (Obi) got me another appointment in the next government. I was given the task to create the Anambra Investment Promotion Agency which I, alongside a few colleagues, set up. Eventually, I ended up as the agency’s pioneer executive director.  Through that office, the state was able to attract over $400 million in investment from domestic investors in Nigerians who are from the state and other parts of the country. Through that avenue, we were also able to create thousands of jobs in the state.

A popular saying goes thus: ’’The reward for hardwork is more work’’. I guess that experience propelled the government to now reappoint me as the Commissioner for Budget and Planning. I was 30 at the time and the youngest commissioner nationwide. Incidentally, I was made the commissioner on my birthday, which was on June 15, 2016.

At 30, were you not scared of coping with bigger task of such office?

I wasn’t!

As soon as I assumed duty, my primary vision was to drive reforms in that ministry.  I was also trying to create the opportunities for young people, so I joined the then Not-Too-Young-To-Run campaign. So, through that agitation, we succeeded in bringing down the minimum age for commissioner to between 20 to 25 years. Today, I’m particularly glad that in Nigeria, we now have young individuals between 20 and 25 holding appointments as commissioners nationwide.

How would you use your experience to inspire youths to a better Nigeria?

I think it’s one thing to complain which is what I used to do. I once complained a lot about bad governance, inefficiency and what have you. The truth is: when you complain and complain, you end up being an armchair critic.  I will recommend my colleagues within the youth segment that it’s about time they made the bold step.  If you want to fix Nigeria, get involved in the process either as an electorate or an aspiring political office holder who desires a positive change in Nigeria. If we continue to have in power majority of people who don’t have a better vision for the country, we will not get better results.  Nigeria needs young people with bright and innovative ideas and who  are also willing to make sacrifices to better the lot of our country.

Do you see a bright future for Nigeria?

I am an  optimist. I believe in the future of Nigeria but sometimes I think we probably have to take a few steps back in order to make a monumental step forward.  So I think youths can come together to set Nigeria on the right path again.

The youths can take a cue from what their counterparts in East and North Africa have been able to do over the last five years.  They organised themselves into a coalition and demanded for a better government Rather than spending so much time on social media. We have about 63 million youths in Nigeria which is a sizeable figure.  We can all put heads together and demand a better Nigeria.

From Hamzat Ibrahim Abaga, IBBUL

Properties worth thousands of naira were destroyed by  fire  that razed a students lodge named: ‘September Eleven’ in Lapai, housing students of Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida University Lapai (IBBUL), Niger State.

Eyewitneses told CAMPUSLIFE that  the inferno was triggered by some unknown persons who set fire in a nearby bush that later went out of control’

The fire, which started in the  evening,  lasted for an hour  destroying valuables such as food items, clothes, and students’ credentials, among others.

Eyewitnesses said officials of the state fire service later arrived the scene to put out the fire.

One of the victims, Mrs Promise Godwin, a final year English undergraduate of IBBUL, told CAMPUSLIFE that the fire consumed everything she had in the hostel.

Another victim Mrs. Patricia, a 300L-level student from the Department of Mass Communication, called on the management of IBBUL to come to their aid.

Similarly, President of the Students Union (SU) Comrade Udris Baba Alhaji aka Elomi, commiserated with the affected students. He described the incident as ‘unfortunate’.

He said:  “I’m feeling all that they (victims) are feeling at the moment. I will do anything in my capacity as the Students’ Union leader to put this across to the school management for some assistance.’’

He advised the victims to remain calm and not lose concentration on their studies.

Also, President, Mass Communication Students’ Association, Comrade Mohammed Yakubu, condoled with the victims.

He urged his colleagues to switch off all electrical appliances before stepping out of their hostels.

 

Bursar, Adeniran Ogunsanya College of Education (AOCOED), Oto/Ijanikin, Lagos State, Mr. Adebisi Adeyanju, has been elected the secretary of the Committee of Bursars of Colleges of Education in Nigeria (COBCOEN).

The election, which took place at the National Commission of Colleges of Education (NCCE) Secretariat, Abuja, also had his counterpart from the Federal College of Education (Technical), Asaba, Delta State,Mr. Joseph Osakwe,  as the chairman.

The new officers are to serve for the year 2019/2020.

COBCOEN consists of bursars in federal, state and private colleges of education in Nigeria. The body aims, among other things, to  foster unity, promote professionalism and chart a new course for financial independence and increase Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) for colleges of education nationwide.

Born five decades ago, Adeyanju is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Taxation (CITN), a registered professional accountant with the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria. He also holds a Masters  in Business Administration (MBA) from Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye, Ogun State.

From Habeebullahi Abdulwasiu, AAUA

Obagunwa Oluwasegun Daniel is the new Students’ Union president of the Adekunle Ajasin University Akungba-Akoko (AAUA), Ondo State.

Obagunwa polled 1,664 votes to defeat Godspower Olorunsannumi Olatujoye Oluwatosin and Adedoyin Stephen.

The new executive members will steer the affairs of the SU for one session.

The election finally came up a week ago, after the initial SU election was postponed due to the hacking into the election’s e-portal by unidentified men which resulted to a mixup of results.

The election, which started by 9am at the computer based-test center ended by 4pm.

Akinlalu Funmilayo Valentina won the vice president post having scored 1,957 votes to defeat her closest rival Olusanya Olawumi with 1,426 votes and and Asaolu Tomiloba that had 451 votes.

Read Also: AAUA introduces ‘Students empowerment scheme’

Other executives who emerged are; Taiwo Joel (general secretary); Adegbeyeni Matthew(public relations officer); Oni Samuel(financial secretary); Alabi Emmanuel( treasurer) and Oseni Ridwan (welfare director).

Emoruwa Great who contested for the office of social director defeated Goroth Kayode              with 369 votes. Also, Adelowo Michael and Olaiya Anthony were elected unopposed as sports director and assistant general secretary respectively.

The results were contained in an official declaration signed by chairman and secretary of the Students’ Union Electoral Committee (SUEC), Dr Stephen Aina and Mr Adebisi Olawale.

From Sam Ibok, AKSCOE

Acting Provost, Akwa Ibom State College of Education (AKSCOE), Afaha Nsit, Dr. Daniel Udo, has inaugurated a security structure in the institution.

The structure is made up of well- experienced security personnel to address insecurity threateninng the peace of the college.

Speaking at the kick-off, Udo assured his administration would ensure evils have no foothold in the college.

This, he explained, triggered the institution’s partnership with a viable security outfit in the fight against insecurity.

On the latest security development in the institution, he said, “The security frame is meant to provide security for staff and students and the entire community.

He added: “Of late, we’ve been having issues of insecurity ranging from burglary, cultism, phone snatching. No responsible parent would want to send his/her ward to a place that is insecure; that is why we are taking security headlong.

“We are doing everything to ensure that whosoever is having  legitimate duty, carries it out without fear of being harrassed or molested. So, the security frame is to  buttress the point that we have taken responsibility to ensure maximum security in the college.”

READ ALSO: On proposed Federal College of Education in Osun State

Udo assured both staff and students of the college continued protection of lives and properties. He added that aside security, management would also prioritise their welfare.

On his part, the manager of the security outfit, Elder George Okon, thanked the management for the partnership.

“We have trained them (personnel) in combat and in many other ways. The same training we give to them here is the same we give to the police, SSS (State Security Service) even Civil Defence. With this team on ground, the school will experience a great change in security.”

Highpoint of the event was inspection of parade by the Provost.

By Agbo Agbo

I was in secondary school when the famous “Ali Must Go” demonstrations – which became synonymous with Chief Segun Okeowo, the late student union activist – took place across the country. He passed on in 2014. We – in our impressionable young minds – never really knew what it was all about then, but we joined the undergraduates in some of the protests in Lagos nonetheless.

I never realised how student unionism had fallen until I wrote a three part series on the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) in 2013 – and many more thereafter. I opened a Pandora’s Box with the articles. After the publication of the first part of the 2013 article, I was inundated with series of calls, emails and SMSs from students and stakeholders in the education sector. I was appalled at some of the allegations which I was unable to publish because I could not independently verify the allegations as they bother on the character and integrity of some individuals. But suffice it to say that I bemoaned, and continue to bemoan for the “future leaders” of our great nation.

I was specifically told of instances where the leadership of a leading faction of NANS hired street urchins, miscreants and “mercenaries” to join their demonstration when they couldn’t get genuine students to participate! I was told they could not get the required student numbers because they were perceived as “government agents” working for dubious and corrupt politicians and public office holders. This has not changed till date.

It is scenarios like this that make one yearn for the ‘good old days’ of the late Okeowo and his contemporaries when student unionism had intellectual and ideological depth and relevance. Back then, students even prepare their own budgets to counter that of the military regime each year. Such was the level of their intellectual depth and prowess.

The late Segun Okeowo was the President of the proscribed National Union of Nigerian Students (NUNS) who provided courageous leadership for the decisive students’ nationwide protest against the commercialisation of education by the then General Olusegun Obasanjo’s military regime in 1978.

Dubbed “Ali Must Go,” the protest emanated from the order of the then Federal Commissioner of Education, Col. Ahmadu Ali (ret), (yes, the same former PDP Chairman under Obasanjo’s civilian presidency) who announced the increase in tuition and feeding fees for all universities in the country. The students went on protest agitating for his immediate removal from office.

It is quite instructive that Col. Ali, a medical doctor, was at a time NUNS president while he was an undergraduate at the University of Ibadan.

The then Federal Military Government had increased the feeding fees from 50 kobo to 70 kobo! Can you believe that! Previously, the costs of meals at various campus cafeterias were: Breakfast, 10 Kobo; Lunch, 20 Kobo and Dinner, 20 Kobo, making a total of 50 Kobo for a three-square meal. With the new increase, breakfast cost 20 Kobo while lunch and dinner cost 25 Kobo each making a total of 70 Kobo per day.

As expected under the military, response to the protest was swift and brutal. Akintunde Ojo, a student of the University of Lagos – Okeowo’s initial alma mater – and some other students were killed by agents of the Nigerian state. It didn’t stop there, NUNS was proscribed while Okeowo was arrested, physically assaulted and expelled from UNILAG. The late Chief Gani Fawehinmi, another renowned activist, then took up his case and served as his legal counsel. His chambers also provided temporary refuge for Okeowo.

Okeowo however completed his degree four years later at the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University) in 1982, graduating with a second class honours degree in Literature in English, with the assistance of Professor Wole Soyinka and other radical lecturers who made his obtaining a full degree possible even at the risk of incurring the wrath of the military.

Though the government stuck to its guns and the increment was never reversed, the protest however marked a watershed in the annals of students uprising in Nigeria as it conveyed to the military government, the shocking capacity of students to mobilise forces across the country. The protest was also significant for it helped to further mainstream student unionism as a national discourse, just as it showcased the power of students to agitate and force change.

Okeowo continued his activism at Ife even in the face of oppression. It was little wonder that he was one of those who condemned the police killing of four students during a funeral procession at the University in 1981. Indeed he was one of those who testified to that effect before the administrative panel of enquiry set up by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), over the incident.

The clampdown on radical student unionism and left-wing lecturers intensified under Obasanjo where many of them were either expelled as students or dismissed as lecturers across the campuses. This however, did not stop the agitations and by 1984, NANS (which emerged out of the ashes of NUNS), now armed with a Students’ Charter of Demands, picked the gauntlet to embark on a nationwide protests and boycott of classes, when the Buhari-Idiagbon regime attempted to further commercialise education, through the re-introduction of tuitions fees in the universities.

Like most radicals and idealists, Okeowo and his contemporaries were carried away by their radicalism and failed to understand the necessity of overcoming the challenges in the education sector through a focused and consistent struggle against bad leadership which transcend student unionism and dovetails into the organised labour movement.

The NANS of today is a far cry from the ideals of NUNS as it has persistently been split into factions and is now a platform for politicians to ‘connect with the youths of the nation.’ The present crop of student leaders would not lose a night’s sleep in collaborating with any government in power no matter the level of its anti-educational policies. They are mainly interested in giving dubious awards or paying ‘courtesy calls’ on state Governors who are approached to sponsor their often dubious conventions. Is it any wonder that after such ‘sponsorships’ the students would lack the moral right to criticise the government that sponsors them?

Armed with his degree, and with age beginning to tell on him, Okeowo (who had a NCE certificate before gaining admission into the university) later pursued a commendable career as an educationist, rising to be principal in many schools in Ogun State such as Ogijo High School; Makun High School, both in Sagamu and Christ Apostolic Grammar School, Iperu Remo. He was appointed a commissioner in the Ogun State Electoral Commission in 1983. He was also member, Federal Government Panel of Enquiry on Ahmadu Bello University Students’ Crisis in 1986.

His maturity equally led to his being appointed a member of the late Chief Rotimi William (‘Timi the Law) led 1976 Constitution Drafting Committee, (CDC), constituted to write what later became the 1979 Constitution by the same Obasanjo regime; though he was later removed from the committee.

Okeowo was also quite prominent in the activities of the Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT) and the All Nigerian Conference of Principals of Secondary Schools (ANCOPSS). His last stint was as Chairman of the Ogun State Teaching Service Commission from where he retired in 2011.

This remarkable Nigerian who – through his actions – defined protests and students activism for his generation was criticised by some for not using his early rise to fame and prominence to drive social change and make a lasting impact at the national level. Such critics would have wished he used his experiences to groom young leaders who would have taken the gauntlet and moved into the future with it rather than being subsumed under the bureaucratic inertia of the civil service where he was later involved.

This notwithstanding, Segun Okeowo was a truly great, sincere and focused student union leader whose boldness has remained unmatched till date. His was a generation that fought and drove home the point that educational opportunities should be accessible for everyone who required it in Nigeria. Though unsung, he remained a role model to students of his era and maybe to some who may be reading this.

Adesoji Adeniyi, Osogbo

The Redeemer’s University Ede in Osun State has conducted matriculation for 788 students for the 2019/2020 academic session.

Speaking at the event, the Vice-Chancellor Prof. Anthony Akinlo, who said the exercise was the fifteenth matriculation of the institution, explained that the number comprised of 748 UTME, direct entry and transfer students while the remaining 40 were postgraduate students.

According to him, the fresh students were being conferred full membership of the university because they had fulfilled all necessary admission requirements.

The vice chancellor enjoined the students to be of good behavior and be law abiding within the university and good ambassadors outside the institution.

READ ALSO: Redeemer’s varsity offers grants

He urged them to acquaint themselves with the Students’ Handbook of Information and avoid involvement in acts of misconduct like stealing, drug abuse, cultism, fighting, examination malpractice and vices.

Akinlo said: “In line with the tradition accorded the last eight sets admitted into the university where they had unique and prophetic names which set them apart, this set has been prayerfully given a name and they are christened Dominion Set.”

He further stated that this name is in line with the vision of the visitor to the university, Pastor E. A. Adeboye, who according to him envisions products of the university as employers of labour and key distinguished employees in their various endeavour wherein they chose to work.

Advising the parents, he said: “We urge our parents to join hands with us in ensuring that these young ones have an all-round training so that they will be found worthy both in character and learning in order for them to excel in all ramifications.”

From Aminu Mamagi and Betty Benjamin

 

Vice-Chancellor, University of Maiduguri, Prof Aliyu Shugaba, has warned students not to be involved in any illegal act within the school premises.

Shugaba made this statement during the matriculation of 11,665 students.

He asked the new students to steer clear of social vices such as cultism, drug abuse, and violent demonstration.

Read Also: Shun corrupt practices, youths advised

 

Shugaba said to act in a manner inconsistent with the peace in the institution could attract serious sanctions.

He enjoined them to be familiarised with the school’s rules and regulations as well as avenue for seeking readdress when their rights are breached.

Two students Hauwa Audu and Peter Amos, expressed optimism for being among the new students. They promised to abide by the do’s and don’t’s of the university.