The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Akungba-Akoko

  • Ajasin varsity VC hails NUC accreditation teams

    The Vice-Chancellor (VC) of Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko (AAUA), Ondo State, Prof Igbekele Ajibefun, has described National Universities Commission (NUC) as a platform for excellence and ethical standards in education.

    The VC stated this while welcoming the NUC accreditation teams visiting the school to verify the state of some courses.

    Ajibefun said NUC had put in efforts that guaranteed progress and improvement in the academic standard of every university, praising members of the accreditation teams drawn from different institutions for making themselves available for the task.

    The VC said: “We all know that accreditation exercise is carried out to look at various programmes and determine areas that should be improved upon in order to ensure high quality of graduates. I want to commend your teams for coming from different locations for this exercise. We hope the assessment of our programme and advice you would give us would help us to improve on our facilities to provide the best produce competitive graduates.

    The three accreditation teams assessed facilities at the school’s Departments of Human Kinetics, Social Studies, and Environmental Biology and Fisheries.

    The leader of the team for the assessment of Human Kinetics, Prof F.B. Adeyanju of the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) in Zaira, Kaduna State, explained that the team was mandated to ensure quality and strict adherence to regulations.

    She said: “We have observed that AAUA graduates have performed excellently well in several areas, but there are bound to be areas that should be improved upon. We will look at everything and suggest how to improve on them. Our job will be done in accordance to our conscience so that the university will enjoy the progress.”

  • Poor funding bane of education

    The Vice Chancellor, Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko, Ondo State, Prof. Igbekele Ajibefun, has identified poor funding as a major threat to achieving a functional education in Nigeria.

    Prof. Ajibefun spoke while playing host to Ondo State House of Assembly’s Committee on Vocational, Technical and Tertiary Education, which visited the campus on a familiarisation tour.

    He said: “Poor funding of Nigeria’s education sector causes setbacks for its inherent ability to compete globally. Adequate funding is inevitable if Nigeria must compete globally with her peers in the education sector, while universities must be up and doing in finding creative ways of sourcing funds.

    “Aside dependence on governments, parents, corporate organisations and wealthy individuals must aid the education sector for it to soar with peers.”

    The VC, who thanked the committee  members for their time and for finding  the university worthy of visiting, said, the institution  strives to always give its best, producing the best in the various fields even in the face of dwindling economy and meagre resources.

    He explained that universities need good facilities to inject the best skills that would enable students have relevant skills and compete globally.

    The Chairman of the Committee, Mr Bankole Felemu, who led the team to the university, praised  the level of infrastructural development at AAUA, especially the Senate Building, which he described as one of Nigeria’s best.

    Other members of the team are: Rt. Hon. Malachi Adeniyi Coker, Hon. Jamiu Suleiman Maito, Hon. Kazeem Musa, Hon. Fasogbon Akinyele, Hon. Ebiwonjumi Sola, Hon. Mukaila Musa, Hon. Akinsoyinu Olugbenga Ifedayo, Chief Oyadeyi O.K, Mrs. Tope Abiona and Mr. Anota.

  • Your support has made AAUA better, VC tells alumni

    Your support has made AAUA better, VC tells alumni

    The Vice-Chancellor (VC) of Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko (AAUA) in Ondo State, Prof Igbekele Ajibefun, has hailed the school’s alumni for supporting the management to realise its goals.

    The VC’s commendation followed a donation of computers to the school by members of the alumni association during their 2017 convention, which held on the campus last weekend.

    Prof Ajibefun, represented by his deputy (Administration), Prof Olugbenga Ige, said he was delighted to see the association grow within a short period of its existence. He noted that the association had become a major contributor to the growth and development of the university.

    The VC said: “The management notes with pride, your consistent contributions, as well as the lofty dreams you nurture to develop your alma mater. We commend your efforts in setting up an endowment scheme for indigent students.”

    Donating the set of computers on behalf of the association, Its President, Mr Patrick Oluyide, said the gesture was part of the collaboration with the university to eradicate the challenges associated with the issuance of certificates and administration of academic transcripts.

    He said:“As part of our efforts, we are donating computers to the Registry Division, which has offices, such as Examinations and Records, Statistics Unit, and University Advancement Office. We are positive that these machines will increase efficiency and remove the air of unpredictability that currently clouds the activities of these vital units.”

    Oluyide urged members of the staff to continue to be friendly with students, noting that a university is nothing without students.

    He said: “Remove students from the university community and what you have left cannot be called a school. We, therefore, urge members of staff to create good and lasting memories of customer’s delight in the minds of students. If they are treated well, they will come back and give back. We must consider this important because a university that cannot depend on its alumni has failed.”

    He praised the Prof Ajibefun-led management for cooperating with the association in moving the school forward. He also praised the Acting Director of the University Advancement Office, Dr Kikelomo Olugbemi, for strengthening the relationship between the university and the alumni body.

    The VC, who took delivery of the computers on behalf of the school, thanked the alumni, saying their gesture was making their alma mater better.

    Prof Ajibefun said: “We are aware and appreciative of your various donations and programmes targeted at improving on our services. Your past donations, including office equipment, power generating set, and the computers you have given today are all laudable. We are grateful to you for the ongoing building of male and female hall of residence.”

    Keynote speaker at the convention lecture titled: Strategies for transforming from cost centre to profit centre: Personal and organisational perspectives, Mr Yinka Olugbodi, urged the university to give priority to entrepreneurship in its service delivery.

  • FRSC urges AAUA to revive campus marshall

    The Federal Road Safety Corps, (FRSC) has called on the management of the Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko (AAUA) in Ondo State, to revive the Campus Marshall– a special unit of the corps for students ­– in the institution.

    The Ikare-Akoko Unit Commander, Mt B.O/ Jimoh, made the call when he visited the Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof Igbekele Ajibefun.

    Jimoh, who praised the giant strides the institution has achieved, pledged to put a zebra crossing in front of the university to aid students and workers safely crossing the highway that passes by the Uuniversity gate.

    Jimoh also hailed the university for putting in place necessary road signs and road furniture all over the campus, noting that these would aid safe driving within the institution.

    The Vice Chancellor thanked the FRSC team for the visit and assured them of cordial and lasting partnership.

    “The university appreciates the coming of the FRSC team. This is more than a courtesy call; it is also a sensitisation meeting, as a number of issues have been cleared in the course of interacting,” he said.

    Also present were the Deputy Vice Chancellor, Prof. Olugbenga Ige; Registrar, M. S. Ayeerun; Bursar, Mrs. O. V. Ologun, who was represented by a Chief Accountant, Mr. Abiodun Olukoju; and the University Librarian, Dr. Rotimi Egunjobi, among other officers of the University.

  • Ajasin varsity radio station to go on air

    It was all excitement last Thursday when top management officials of the Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko (AAUA) in Ondo State, formally took possession of the school’s radio station.

    Named Radio AAUA, the Frequency Modulation (FM) station is on the campus and is licensed to broadcast on 90.3 Megahertz. The station will start full operation when it secures approval from the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC).

    Speaking at a brief hand-over ceremony, the Vice-Chancellor (VC), Prof Igbekele Ajibefun, said the station would offer a quantum leap in the quality of training facilities available to students, adding that it would serve as a medium of information, education and entertainment to members of the university community, and residents of the host communities.

    He recalled previous efforts to get an operating licence for the station before it was finally obtained. He praised employees who played key roles in the actualisation of the dream.

    He expressed delight at the quality of equipment installed in the station’s studio, while applauding the management team for ensuring the speedy completion of the project despite paucity of funds.

    Prof Ajibefun was conducted round the facility and adjourning offices in company of management members.

    Mr Olusola Akinrinlola, managing director of Sound Broadcast Communications Limited, the firm that provided the equipment, assured the school of the quality and durability of the gadgets supplied.

    He said: “I assure the management and students of the university that the quality of the equipment supplied is up to the standard. We have long years of experience executing this kind of project and we deliver. All gadgets will stand the test of time.”

    Akinrinlola said the firm would train operators and staff that would run the station on how to operate the machines. “You only have to call on us for the training and we would gladly do that,” he said.

  • Ondo Varsity, firm sign MoU on energy

    A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko (AAUA) and Dantata Solar Limited that would guarantee uninterrupted electricity to the institution in the next six months has been signed.

    The deal was facilitated by the Ondo State Government as one of the benefits of the Nigerian-German Energy Partnership.

    It is one of the moves of the Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu-led administration to provide regular power supply to towns and rural communities across the state.

    Akeredolu lauded the cooperation between Nigeria and Germany through which the university would begin to enjoy a new lease of life, having lacked electricity supply from the national grid for years.

    Akeredolu said the MoU would spur other institutions to emulate the university in their drive to deliver welfare, impart knowledge and turn out quality graduates for the overall development of the nation.

    The governor, however, pleaded with the Consul-General of Germany, Ingo Herbert, who led the team, to further help the state government by extending the similar gesture of providing power supply to communities in the riverine areas.

    Earlier, the Consular-General had said the Sunshine State,  should leverage on its solar potentials to generate enough solar energy for its people.

    The Coordinator of the Nigerian-Germany Energy Partnership, Dr Jeremy Gaines, said the project would stop the use of environmentally-unfriendly diesel generators at the university.

    AAUA Vice-Chancellor, Prof Igbekele Ajibefun, expressed gratitude to the government for the gesture.

    He said by the time the project was delivered, the university would be relieved of the huge sums of money being spent on fuelling and maintaining the numerous generators servicing the sprawling university campus.

    The university administrator added that the development would ensure that the laboratories, electronic and electrical facilities as well as other units and components of the university work optimally.

    Ajibefun signed the MoU on behalf of the university while the Project Manager of Dantata, Mr Oyeneye Babajide, signed for the solar energy company.

    Other dignitaries at the ceremony were the Deputy Governor, Agboola Ajayi; Secretary to the State Governor(SSG) Ifedayo Abegunde; Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Pastor Femi Agagu, his counterpart in the Ministry of Information), Yemi Olowolabi; the Chief of Staff(CoS) to the Governor, Olugbenga Ale; Special Adviser on Development and Investment, Mr Boye Oyewunmi; as well as the Special Adviser on Education, Dr. Olawumi Ilawole.

  • Applause for TETFund’s impact on AAUA

    The Vice Chancellor (VC), Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko (AAUA), Ondo State, Prof. Igbekele Ajibefun, has described as profound the impact of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund’s (TetFund) intervention efforts on the tertiary education sector.

    The VC said this during an interactive session with top officials of the agency held at the university.

    He listed the landmark projects sponsored by TetFund in AAUA, adding that such interventions have changed the face of infrastructural development in the institution.

    Ajibefun was elated at the maiden visit of the Executive Secretary of TetFund to the institution, describing it as historic

    He said:  “Your visit today is a historic one. This is the first time the number one person in TETFund would be paying an official visit. It is our strong belief that this historic visit by TETFund will bring unprecedented development to our university.”

    Earlier, the TetFund Executive Secretary, represented by Mallam Aliyu Na’iya, the Director, Research and Development, said the visit was part of projects proposal defence, verification of physical projects, and reconciliation of financial records of beneficiaries of the Fund to determine their compliance with laid-down procedures for retiring released funds.

    This, he said, would ensure transparency and openness in dealing with financial transactions bythe agency.

    The ES addressed several issues, including sponsorship of conferences and workshops, training for academic and non-staff, problems associated with inbreeding, and other related matters during interactive sessions with staff members.

    He regretted that money worth millions of Naira earmarked for research and development in tertiary institutions had been  unutilised.

  • ‘Student unionism not a tool for violence’

    ‘Student unionism not a tool for violence’

    Adekunle Ajasin University  Akungba-Akoko (AAUA),  Ondo State Vice-Chancellor (VC) Prof Igbekele Ajibefun has said students’ unionism should not cause hostility and destruction in the university, but be seen as a call to serve, in concert with the school management to promote students’ welfare and provide a conducive atmosphere for learning and research.

    Prof Ajibefun gave the advice penultimate Monday at a three-day Leadership Training and Seminar, organised for members of the institution’s Student Union Government (SUG) in Igbara-Oke, Ifedore Local Government Area of the state.

    The event with the theme: Promoting a peaceful university environment, was at the instance of the Students’ Affairs Unit of the school.

    The VC condemned the notion that unionism should be destructive, violent, quarrelsome and confrontational, pointing out that the SUG is a platform for students to acquire progressive leadership values.

    He said: “It is a regrettable error that some student unionists believe that the effectiveness of their stewardship would be measured by the number of battles and wars they fight with the school authorities. They tend to believe that their members would hail them as ‘action man’ if they are constantly at war with the management or how effective they are pushing for destructive Aluta.

    “You must understand that these are wrong notions about student unionism.  SUG members stand to gain more and achieve their target of improving the lots of their members through mutual cooperation, and constant dialogue with management on whatever demands they make.

    “Therefore, as student leaders, you must be firm and resolute. You must also be transparent and carry your members along in all decisions. There have been peace and tranquility on our campus for some years; you have responsibility to maintain this tempo during your tenure.”

    Prof Ajibefun promised the students’ leaders that the management would always listen to them and strive to meet their demands, despite the challenge of funding. He assured them that the university would prioritise students’ interests.

    The event featured lectures and interactive sessions with members of the union executive and Students Representative Council (SRC).

    In a lecture titled: The roles of communication ethics in peaceful and progressive unionism, former AAUA Deputy VC (Administration), Prof Francis Oyebade, advised the students’ leaders to create channel of effective communication with their members and the school authorities in presenting their goals logically. He said lack of communication would lead to suspicion, which would in turn fuel crisis that may bring the union into disrepute.

    The Deputy VC, Prof Olugbenga Ige, took the students on the theme: Redefining the roles of 21st Century students’ unionism: A pragmatic approach to leadership, while the Bursar, Mrs Olubunmi Ologun, spoke on how the students’ leaders could be accountable in her lecture with the theme: Roles of financial record keeping and transparency in students’ union leadership as panacea for peace in the university.

    Dean of Students’ Affairs, Dr Francis Gbore,  urged the students to imbibe the lessons learnt from the seminar, urging them to become pragmatic leaders.

    The training, he said, was necessary to engender a peaceful campus and train the students on the values of leadership.

    The union president, Olawale Ijanusi, thanked the management for the training. He added that the seminar changed their perception of unionism and leadership values.

  • AAUA FM awaits licence

    The management and other principal officers of Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko,(AAUA) Ondo State have  taken possession of the facilities of its radio station.

    Christened Radio AAUA, the frequency modulation (FM) station is located within the university campus and is licensed to broadcast on 90.3 Megahertz.

    It is billed to come on air as soon as approval is secured from the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC).

    Speaking at the brief handover, Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof. Igbekele Ajibefun, said the medium would offer a quantum leap in the quality of training facilities available to students.

    It would also serve as veritable medium of information, education and entertainment the university community, as well as the inhabitants of neighboring communities.

    Ajibefun recalled that the institution had embarked on several efforts to get an operating licence for a campus radio, until it was finally obtained less than a year ago.

    He commended the various officers who had played one role or the other in the actualisation of the dream.

    Ajibefun expressed delight at the quality of equipment installed, and applauded management for ensuring speedy completion of the project in the face of scarce resources.

    Ajibefun later went round the studios and other adjourning offices, accompanied by other management team led by some top principal of the university.

    The Managing Director of the contracting firm-Sound Broadcast Communications Limited, Olusola Akinrinola, had earlier assured the university of quality and durability of equipment supplied.

  • Philanthropist gives building, land to AAUA

    A philanthropist and Engineer, Chief Julius Ajibulu, has donated a three-floor building with  over 29 rooms and a large parcel of land measuring about two and a half acres located at Oyin Akoko to Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko, Ondo State.

    Chief Ajibulu, Managing Director of Nobell Engineering Company, and Roja Associates Engineering Consultancy, said that the donation was his own way of giving back to the society, boosting the economy of Oyin Akoko (his home town), as well as fulfilling his vision of having an educational institution in the town.

    He said the vision of having such an institution informed the design of the two-storey building with 29 rooms as well as other adjoining structures.

    His words: “It’s been my ambition to have some enduring structure like an educational institution, and that informed the design of this property. I’m now handing this over to the University so it could be used as an educational edifice in line with my original vision and expectation.

    “I believe by the time this place is put to use by the university that it will boost socio-economic, activities in this town. The artisans and market women, as well as commercial motorcyclists will make more money. I also believe that the presence of undergraduates here would make many lazy youths to sit-up and dream bigger.”

    Speaking after inspecting the properties, the Vice Chancellor, Prof Igbekele Ajibefun, lauded the gesture and called on well-meaning individuals and communities to donate to help the university develop, saying government alone cannot fund tertiary education in Nigeria.

    Ajibefun said: “We’re highly impressed with what we have seen and the large heart that Chief has for donating this to the university. This is a good example of how the society can grow.

    “The university, therefore, expresses its appreciation to him. We will perfect the papers so we can take possession and put the properties to use without delay.”

    Also speaking, the Oloyin of Oyin- Akoko, Oba Olusola Bamisile, praised Ajibulu for the donation and urged the university to take possession and put the facilities to immediate use.