Category: South West

Prof. Kayode Adebowale has emerged as the 13th Vice Chancellor of the University of Ibadan.

Adebowale, a Professor of Chemistry, is currently the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Admin) of the university.

His emergence followed the final screening by the Joint Senate-Council Selection Board of the university held yesterday at the Adeoye Lambo Senate Chamber.

The board on Wednesday reduced the number of candidates to eight after screening the 15 applicants for the position.

The eight successful candidates participated in the final interview yesterday, after which three were selected.

Those who scaled through screening on Wednesday included the acting Vice Chancellor, Prof. Adebola Ekanola, Professors Yinka Aderinto, Adebowale Ademowo and Salako.

Unveiling the new VC at a news conference held at the conference room of the VC’s office, the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governor Council, John Odigie-Oyegun, said the candidate emerge after a rigorous exercise.

Speaking after his presentation, the new VC said he was not the best candidate, but that God gave him the opportunity because there was work to be done.

He said: “It is a privilege for me to serve. The Professor Adebowale seated here is not the best out of the candidates. God just wants me to serve.”

TWENTY-FOUR hours to the state congresses of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo State, it is clear that the former faces parallel congresses, while the latter has managed to close ranks to elect acceptable candidates.

Signs of continued disagreements emerged on Wednesday when The Nation learnt that a meeting, which Governor Seyi Makinde held with leaders of aggrieved members in his office on Tuesday ended without an agreement. The meeting followed an earlier one held with former Senate President Adolphus Wabara in Abuja where both sides agreed to work together.

The Nation learnt that at the Ibadan meeting, where the earlier agreement was meant to be implemented through ground-shifting and integration, the governor insisted that the time to accommodate the aggrieved was not yet ripe. He was said to have explained that he was prepared to accommodate them, but that the time was not yet ripe.

The aggrieved leaders, who were said to have left the meeting disappointed, thereafter made up their mind to hold a parallel congress tomorrow.

But the state PDP Publicity Secretary, Akeem Olatunji, said the party was unaware of any plan for a parallel congress.

APC leaders reached a final agreement on Wednesday evening on zoning of positions for tomorrow’s state congress. The groups within the party were said to have agreed to the sharing formula after series of meetings.

One of the leaders told The Nation: “You are the ones calling it parallel. All I know is that we core PDP members in Oyo State will hold state congress on Saturday.”

When asked why the Tuesday meeting ended without an agreement to work together, the aggrieved PDP leader said: “He (Makinde) called for us; we didn’t tell him that we wanted a meeting. We thought he had a good thing to offer, but only to see that he had nothing to offer us. You see, power can be deceitful. It makes you think that everything is in your beck and call but you will be shocked.”

The proceeds realised from the 21st National Women Conference (NWC) will be tailored towards sponsoring a school project, wife of the Lagos State governor, Mrs. Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu, has said.

She spoke yesterday at a news conference to mark the start of the annual conference in Lagos.

The NWC is championed by the Committee of Wives of Lagos State Officials (COWLSO), chaired by Mrs. Sanwo-Olu.

She said proceeds from previous conferences were used to build recreational centres, with about 10 centres built so far and managed by the Ministry of Youths, Sports and Social Development.

This year’s conference with the theme: ‘Awake’, will also feature award for the ‘Inspirational Youth of the Year’, with about 7,000 participants expected virtually and physically.

It will hold from October 26 to 28 at the Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island.

Mrs. Sanwo-Olu said: “We want our women to be awake and in tune with modern realities. We want participants to be equipped with the skills and expertise to make a positive difference. They should be solution to the myriad of challenges confronting us as a state and nation. This is the essence of the theme this year.

“We realise that some of our children are in the rural areas and don’t have access to quality education. So we will partner the Ministry of Education in providing learning aids for them, having known the importance this administration attaches to education.”

“All proceeds from this conference will be channelled towards things that will help our children. We will partner the Ministry of Education in a school project to ensure our children have the best equipment to learn.

“We will also be looking at ensuring that children with special needs have the necessary equipment to learn. Education is the bedrock of society and it is very important that we catch them young.

“First Lady Mrs. Aisha Buhari is the mother of the day. Ondo State Governor Rotimi Akeredolu will open the conference, while Edo State Governor Godwin Obaseki will close it.”

Dignitaries at the briefing were wife of the Deputy Governor Mrs. Oluremi Hamzat, wife of the Speaker of the House of Assembly Falilat Obasa, wife of the Chief of Staff Mrs. Doyin Ayinde, conference chairperson Mrs. Nkem Shofela, among others.

Lagos State Education Commissioner Mrs. Folasade Adefisayo has praised Bolade Junior Grammar School, Oshodi, for winning the Best Public Secondary School in Nigeria award at the President’s Teacher and School Excellence Award (PTSEA).

The commissioner and senior officials in the ministry, who yesterday received the team that represented Lagos State at the PTSEA, at the Ministry of Education, said the award was a sign of better things to come.

She said Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu is surprised that the best school in Lagos and Nigeria is in Oshodi.

Bolade Junior Grammar School, Oshodi, brought home the prize – a Toyota Hiace bus – for the second consecutive year.  Last year, Oriwu Senior Model College, Ikorodu won the award.

Two teachers from the state’s public schools were recognised for shining at the national level.  Mrs. Temitope Obiwumi of Wahab Folawiyo Junior Secondary School, Osborne, Ikoyi, emerged second runner-up in the Best Teacher in Junior Secondary School in Nigeria category, while Mr. Rasheed Odenike of Lagos State Civil Service Senior Model College, Igbogbo, Ikorodu came fourth in the Best Teacher in Senior Secondary Schools in Nigeria category. They were given laptops and refrigerators.

Also yesterday, the Education commissioner and her counterpart in the Ministry of Housing, Mr. Mauf Akinderu-Fatai, presented house keys to two teachers who won the PTSEA in 2019 – Mrs. Agnes Elusakin and Mr. Pius Ikuseyidunmi.

The gift was in fulfilment of a promise made in 2019 by Governor Sanwo-Olu.

Osun State Governor Adegboyega Oyetola will today begin the disbursement of N636,195,000  among 2,000 beneficiaries .

The disbursement, which will hold  at Mandela Freedom Park, Osogbo, is in continuation of Medium, Small and Micro Enterprises Development Fund from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), in conjunction with the state.

The acting General Manager of Osun Micro Credit Agency, in a statement by the media office of the agency, Mr. Sanya Olopade, said: “With today’s disbursement launch by Governor Oyetola, the total number of beneficiaries will be 31, 888 and the total amount disbursed for Medium and Small Micro Enterprises Development in the state so far will be N6.5 billion.”

The categories of beneficiaries expected at the venue today, as contained in the statement, are artisans, traders, farmers, manufacturers and producers under the Small and Medium Enterprises, individuals and the public.

The statement enjoined beneficiaries and other expected dignitaries to arrive the venue not later than 9am to receive their benefactor and facilitator of the financial intervention, Governor Oyetola, by 10 am.