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Tag: Obafemi Awolowo University

  • 18 years after, Afrika lives on

    The memories of July 10, 1999 will continue to be a defining moment in the annals of the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) in Ile-Ife, Osun State. The event of that day will forever remain fresh as it is passed on from generation of students to another. It marked the watershed in the history of students’ unionism at the Great Ife.

    It was the day George Akinyemi Iwilade (aka Afrika) was hacked to death by members of the Black Axe Confraternity in alliance with other cult groups. Afrika, who was then the General Secretary of the Students’ Union Government (SUG), wasn’t the only victim of that vicious attack visited on the collective will of students. Four of his roommates, Eviano Ekelemu (a graduating student), Yemi Ajiteru (a 100-Level Philosophy student), Babatunde Oke, and Godfrey Ekpede were murdered in their sleep, as the group came for the then SUG President, Lanre Adeleke (aka Legacy).

    Prof Roger Makanjuola’s account of the gory incident is even more descriptive, when he said: “Babatunde Oke was still alive but died on the operating table. Four others, George Iwilade, Yemi Ajiteru, Efe Ekpede and Eviano Ekelemu, were brought in dead. Eviano Ekelemu bled to death from gunshot wounds to the groin and thigh. The other three died from gunshot wounds to the head.”

    Legacy was reported to have fled the campus before the assailants arrived at his hostel in the wee hours of July 10; though he was said to have been shot at. It was reported that he escaped by jumping from a balcony when the gun-wielding attackers came for him after killing Afrika in cold blood.

    The product of that horrific past is the vibrant unionism at Great Ife. However, 18 years after this gory incident, stability has continued to elude the Great Ife campus, not just in administrative policies but in students’ unionism. It would seem the efforts of those who sacrificed their lives to fight for independence of our SUG from the hands of cultists and university administrators were in vain, given the parlous state of the union. Just as the country is faced with myriads of problems, OAU has its challenges. Democracy can only be sustained in a pro-democratic ambience, but that vibrancy once associated with our union has eroded 18 years down the line. The school has had its recent share of sad events, with the current union president accused of by-passing the congress to pursue self-serving projects.The union president has also been seen engaging in projects that do not have direct impact on students.

    The union recently acquired a bus that has been declared unfit for transportation. The transaction has raised all manner of accusations and counter-accusation. This makes me ask a question on whether OAU is truly honouring Afrika’s legacy?

    Only recently, former Acting Vice Chancellor, Prof Anthony Elujoba, was arrested for alleged fraud. Prof Elujoba, who has been described as a “man of the people”, because of his prompt payments of salaries and arrears to staff and a stable academic calendar, is now battling to save his name in court of law.

    The unrest Great Ife has witnessed in the tenure of successive SUG leadership has always been caused by welfare. It is a shame that we have a students’ union in place, but students are daily driven out of their hostel rooms to sleep in the corridors, because their rooms are infested with bed bugs and all sorts of termites. Students also battle rats and dangerous reptiles in their halls of residence.

    The campus has become a place where students are exploited, cheated by drivers of the campus shuttles and made to pay exorbitant prices for services. When we gather every July 10 to remember the sacrifice of our heroes, we must bear in mind that we owe the coming generation of students a duty to bequeath a vibrant union. Students’ union is a pressure group. If SUG leaders cannot account for a N2.9 million bus which is described, in many quarters, as an inferior vehicle, what then is the essence of the union? A subvention of N9 million was released to the union, but the money could not be used to better lives of the students.

    At 21, young and still very active, Afrika was murdered. He was murdered for advocating for a cultism-free campus, which we all enjoy till today. Today, we have the freedom to move freely on the campus at any hour of the day, because of one man who sacrificed his life for others to have peace.

    What legacies shall we then leave behind for prospective students, 18 years after Afrika and five others were brutally murdered? These are questions we must answer very fast. As we say in the union, the death of consciousness is the rise of tyranny. As we remember them, the people who gathered for the commemoration and the current SUG leadership must provide answer to this question.

    • Joseph is a student of Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife
  • NASRDA, OAU set to honour atmospheric researcher

    NASRDA, OAU set to honour atmospheric researcher

    All roads lead to Ile-Ife, the Cradle of Yoruba, on Thursday 27 July 2017 to celebrate a great Icon, Professor Ekundayo Elisha Balogun of the Department of Physics and Engineering Physics, Obafemi Awolowo, University OAU an erudite scholar who will clock 80.

    The organisers are the Centre for atmospheric research (CAR), National Space Research and Development Agency, (NASRDA) Anyigba, Africa Regional Center for Space Science and Technology Education – English (ARCSSTEE) NASRDA, OAU Ile–Ife, Cooperative Information Network (COPINE), NASRDA,  Ile–Ife, Department of Physics and Engineering Physics,  OAU, Ile-Ife.

    A national symposium with the theme: ‘Atmospheric Research in Nigeria: The journey so far’. The event is organised to commemorate his 80th birthday and to highlight the contributions of this great icon to the development of atmospheric research in Nigeria and global community at large.

    Parts of his achievements include serving as the pioneer Executive Director of the United Nations Affiliated African Regional Centre for Space Science Technology Education for English Speaking countries UN-ARCSSTE-E located within the Campus of OAU, chairman of the national committee of top space scientists that drafted the first ever Nigerian space policy during the military era in 1993.

    The release also stated that the symposium will feature presentations on the life and contributions of Professor E. E. Balogun to the development of Space Science in developing nations and atmospheric research in particular.

    While a special lectures shall be delivered by eminent atmospheric scientists and contributed papers by over several participants.

  • OAU: Student Representative Council suspends Acting President

    OAU: Student Representative Council suspends Acting President

    The Student Representative Council of the Obafemi Awolowo University on the 13th of July 2017 in a parliamentary sitting held at the Awolowo Cafe has suspended the Acting Student Union President for 10 working days.

    According to the Speaker Falayi Temitope he said the Acting President was said to have committed series of offences which are ; constitutional aberration, procedural error and negligence of duty, with respect to the Freshers’ Orientation Programme she organized. He said two motions were moved of which include :

    1. That she should be suspended for 10 working days and her budget for Freshers’ Orientation Programme be reviewed by the Budgetary and Finance Committee

    2. That she should write an apology letter and her budget for Freshers’ Orientation Programme be reviewed by Budgetary and Finance Committee of
    It should be recalled that the suspended acting president Jacob Tosin withdrew #21,000 in the Unions account without the consent of the house and she not presenting the budget to them.  On the 2nd of July there was a parliamentary sitting of which people voted before the sitting was disrupted and the house went on recess

  • Menstrual hygiene: UNICEF trains adolescent schoolgirls on washable pad

    Menstrual hygiene: UNICEF trains adolescent schoolgirls on washable pad

    The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) on Tuesday trained  adolescent girls in Osun public schools on how to make washable sanitary pad for effective menstrual hygiene management.

    The training was part of a four-day workshop organised by UNICEF in collaboration with Health Aid For All Initiative (HAFAI) for secondary school adolescent girls on menstrual hygiene management in Iragbiji, Osun,

    The UNICEF representative, Miss Hyeladzirah Shalangwa, said the training was aimed at helping young girls to have access to affordable sanitary pad during mensuration.

    Shalangwa, who noted that many young adolescent girls could not afford the disposable pad due to its high price, said the training would assist them on how to make washable pad on their own.

    According to her, the training will also assist in reducing waste disposal, since the pad is washable.

    She added that the training would create consciousness of menstrual hygiene management and empower the girls, saying they could even make and sell the washable pad.

    “There is no doubt that sanitary pad is expensive and the quality is deteriorating but with this training on washable pad, girls are good to go,” she noted.

    The resource person at the programme, Mr Femi Aluko, said the training would create menstrual hygiene management on the consciousness of the girls.

    Aluko, who is a lecturer at the Department of Community Health, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, said since the washable pad could not be disposed, it would help in waste disposal management.

    Prof. Nkadi Onyegbegbu, the National Coordinator of UNICEF ‘ Win 4 Girls Project ‘ in Nigeria, urged girls to avoid using herb for menstrual pains.

    She said taking herbs for menstrual pain could destroy the kidney and other vital organs in the body.

    She advised that “lying on a bed with two legs raised up would assist in reducing menstrual pain.”

  • Greatest evil as reactions trail bedbug infestations in OAU

    Greatest evil as reactions trail bedbug infestations in OAU

    If any OAU Student were asked to choose which was better, between being sucked to death by losing blood or losing foodstuffs to rats every night; a typical OAU student will rather go for the latter. At least it is better, losing foodstuffs to the destructive tendencies of rats since they will surely respond to poison where fumigation of bed bugs is irresponsive.

    The recent infestation of bed bugs and the clamor by affected students of the prestigious Obafemi Awolowo University is one situation stronger than the cry of hunger from the camps of IDPS or Meningitis pandemonium as history persists to knock on the door when only two years ago, on the 29th September 2015, the University of Lagos was shut down by students due to the influx of bedbugs, rendering habitation on Campus hazardous.

    For Dahunsi Paui, a 500-level Medical Rehabilitation student of the College of Health Sciences of the Obafemi Awolowo University, it was a rosy welcome to the embers of the institution widely renowned for learning and culture, on the eve of his resumption that those heinous insects struck.

    He was quoted thus: “this bedbug rise is really bad! I came back to school just to lie back on the bed and I felt a bite on my neck! I stood up immediately to see bedbugs! The school should do something about it.”

    While others might think there maybe be redemption for the extermination of bedbugs in the various Halls of Residences in the institution, Praise Moses, a 300-level student of the Faculty of Arts and Olabode Tokunbo, a 300 level student of Sociology and Anthropology department beg to differ.

    “There were days I had to go to academics to sleep, just because of bedbugs. My friends in ETF hall used (Not sure about now though) to go to other rooms to sleep. Everywhere is infested; even God cannot save us because OAU is too filthy for him. Only a meticulous cleanup of the hostels will do,” Praise added.

    Tokunbo while narrating his experience stated that the fear of bedbugs is the beginning of wisdom. “Personally,” He stated,  “during my part 2 first semester, I could recall how I was incessantly falling ill unknown to me that it was as a result of bedbug usually coming to feed on me while I was having my sweet siesta, meanwhile I always thought it was malaria as a result of mosquitoes. Fast forward to second semester part 2, and I can count how many nights I passed in my room for the fear of bedbug. And it’s that same reason amongst others for my failing to resume but I have no option than to just resume.”

    The bedbug infestation has continued to generate several reactions from both fresh and stale students alike. Many students have continued to beckon on the management to find lasting solutions to the menace, as well as construct new hostels and properly fumigate its bushy environments.  Lawal Ayobami Victor has blamed the management of the institution of irresponsiveness whilst urging other students to engage in a solidarity stance in bettering the adverse welfare conditions.

    “Let people take some level of responsibility if the management is refusing to do something. After all, it’s not the management that those things are biting. In Nigeria, University management has seized to be in existence in matters relating to students’ welfare, but they are just there for other reasons- Pocket infrastructure.”

    While Ayobami Victor is not wrong in terms of his contribution as he nursed his grievances on the issue long overdue; strong indications from the past are sure to resurface again if care isn’t taken to avoid history repeating itself over and over again.

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  • Oyo appoints Salami as pioneer VC of technical varsity

    The Oyo State Government has announced the appointment of Prof.  Ayobami Salami as the pioneer Vice-Chancellor of Technical University, Ibadan.

    The Secretary to the State Government, Mr. Olalekan Alli, said in a statement in Ibadan that Gov. Abiola Ajimobi had approved the appointment with immediate effect for a term of five years.

    Until the latest appointment, Salami was Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) and Director, Institute of Ecology and Environmental studies at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife.

    The statement described the new vice chancellor as a widely travelled scholar and environmental consultant with previous teaching and research experience at the University of the Gambia, The Gambia.

    He was also at the University of Dar es Sallam, Tanzania, and International Institute for Geo-Information Science and Earth Observation, Enschede, The Netherlands.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the newly licensed tertiary institution is located in an industrial hub of the state’s Free Trade Zone designed to accommodate 175 manufacturing concerns.

    The state-owned university, the statement said, would commence full academic activities in September, 2017.

    “The university’s mission is to cultivate a cadre of technical professionals with requisite entrepreneurial skills capable of creating jobs and employment.

    “This will be done by imparting sound theoretical knowledge and practical skills in various trades and disciplines to students.

    “The focus is to provide the training and learning environment that will produce exceptional graduates who are socially-conscious and technically-competent,” the statement said.

  • NUGA: Eight universities seek semi-finals slots as football quarter-finals begin

    NUGA: Eight universities seek semi-finals slots as football quarter-finals begin

    Eight universities are to play for slots in the semi-finals of the ongoing 25th Nigerian Universities Games Association Games (NUGA) Games as the quarter-finals kick off later on Thursday.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the universities that reached the knockout stage of the competition at the Federal University of Agriculture, Makurdi (UAM) are Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU), Bauchi.

    ATBU on Wednesday defeated hard-fighting Lagos State University (LASU) 4-2 on penalties in their last group stage match.

    Other schools are UAM, Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), Delta State University (DELSU) and University of Ilorin (UNILORIN), LASU, University of Calabar (UNICAL) and North-West University, Kano.

    To reach the stage, UAM defeated UNILORIN 2-1, Kaduna State University (KASU) 2-0 and played goalless draw with FUTA to top their group with 7 points.

    FUTA also advanced to the knockout stage by playing a goalless draw against UAM, thrashed Rivers State University of Science and Technology (RSUT) 2-1 and drew 1-1 with KASU.

    DELSU playing in the same group with UNILORI and University of Lagos (UNILAG), walked over (UNILAG) and beat RSUT 3-1 to qualify from the group.

    UNILORIN that won no played match at the group stages also qualified because it walked over UNILAG.

    UNICAL qualified by beating Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) 1-0, while ATBU also won one match and drew one to qualify from their group.

    The quarter matches are expected to start on Thursday at the two football pitches at the UAM Sports Complex.

  • Best LASU graduating student wrote UTME seven times

    Best LASU graduating student wrote UTME seven times

     

    A pregnant woman, Mrs Elizabeth Orefuwa, the Lagos State University (LASU) best graduating students in 2015/2016, says she wrote the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) seven times before gaining admission.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the heavily pregnant student, graduated with a Cumulative Grade Point Average of 4.74 in Accounting Education.

    Orefuwa, 29, said during the institution’s 21st convocation on Wednesday in Lagos that the journey through the institution did not come easy but with determination and motivation, she had success a story to tell.

    She said that in the process of seeking for university admission, she started a professional career in accounting.

    “The journey through the institution was not easy; it took me seven years of writing the UTME before I finally gained admission in 2012.

    “I also applied for direct entry three times at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife.

    “During this period of waiting, I started professional career at the Institute of Chartered Accountant of Nigeria (ICAN) in 2007 and became qualified as an Associate Chartered Accountant (ACA) in 2010,’’Orefuwa told NAN.

    She said that she wanted to study accounting but fate brought her to education, adding that she enjoyed every bit of it and never dreamt of coming out with a first class and becoming the best student.

    According to her, self-determination and motivation through her father’s insisting on academic excellence give her an edge.

    “My aim is to get my first degree certificate after several years of waiting and to satisfy my dad, who has been insisting on academic certificate before professional certificate.

    “He would always say to me then that I have put the cart before the horse.

    “However, what kept me going was self-belief, focus and determination bearing in mind that I am not competing with other but with my own capabilities.’’

    She said that her marriage at the beginning of her final year and the pregnancy condition did not affect her academic performance.

    “I had a CGPA of 4.72 before marriage and I graduated with 4.74 point.

    “I got married during my final year in 2015 and my husband was very supportive throughout that period.’’

    Although a chartered accountant, Orefuwa said she would love to teach and combine it with practising accounting profession.

     

  • Victus Chambers, OAU, enlightens students on the Law profession

    “The Talk: Beyond Wigs and Gowns”, which is an annual event hosted by Victus Chambers (Faculty of Law, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife), held its second edition on Wednesday, the 8th of March, 2017.

    It sets out to enlighten the minds of law students concerning the law profession, to make clear dark horizons in the profession, and to raise the consciousness of students to the ubiquitous benefits that abound in the field.

    According to the organizers, “we intend to show students that they can diversify to suit their areas of interest.

    “They are to learn that wherever their area of interest is, whether they wish to practice or not, a good knowledge of law sets them apart and gives them an edge over their contemporaries.”

    It was an interactive event, which saw speakers with qualitative experiences in different areas of practice bring their invaluable (personal and professional) experiences to bare.

    This year’s edition had in attendance: Prof. Popoola (Dean, Faculty of Law O.A.U.), Bamidele olamilekan (online publicist and lawyer), Barr. Aisagbonhi Peter (Former Lord Chancellor & Ultimate Counsel, Victus Chambers), Kayode Makinde (Manager, Fidelity Bank‎), and Yinka Salau (Actor, Entertainer & Professional compere).

     

  • Tinubu links visionary leadership to good governance

    Tinubu links visionary leadership to good governance

    Former governor of Lagos State and national leader of the All Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has identified visionary leadership with strong intellectual ability as key to entrenchment of good governance in Nigeria.

    Speaking at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife, Osun State at the 1st National Conference of Nigerian Political Science Association, South West Zone, Tinubu noted that a myriad of challenges facing the nation was as a result of inexperienced and capable men and women who have steered the sheep of leadership in many fronts.

    Represented by an international scholar, Prof. Adebayo Williams, he said it was imperative to have proper planning and orientation for would be leaders if the challenge must be eradicated.

    He said: “Excellence political leadership should be based on essential and strategic political vision. In taking any step in life especially to lead, you must prepare your plan and strategize to make it work. There cannot be national progress without solving the problem of national security.”

    In his remarks at the event, the Osun State governor, Mr. Rauf Aregbesola, challenged political scientists in the country to provide more information and advice to those in power.

    Noting that the relevance of political scientists has unquantifiable roles to play in the society, Aregbesola decried the alienation between the academic community and the larger society calling for a change.

    The governor, who identified productivity as the duty of leaders, underscored the need for politicians to be concerned on areas that will effectively cater for the needs of the mass populace.

    “The efficient utilization of nature through what we enjoy should be production. The dominion of man to produce continually what he takes and use is a goal of civilization. The moment you continue to use 30% to cater for 99% population brings more challenges.”

    In his keynote address on the theme of the conference titled “Democracy, Nation Building and Development in Nigeria,” former Vice Chancellor, Ekiti State  University formerly University of Ado-Ekiti, Prof. Dipo  Kolawole, called for the refocus, redefinition and reconceptualization of the government at the center to the needs of the electorate.

    Stressing that Nigerians want performance from people in positions of authority, Kolawole hinted that the constraints for national development was as a result of the irresponsiveness of leaders to democratic policies.

    According to him, what needs to be done is for the present administration to redirect its focus by engaging key stakeholders as well as be concerned with the challenges of the common man.

    He said: “We must refocus our politics by redefining areas where we can debate issues for the betterment of the country. Nigeria must try to reclaim its leadership positions in Africa so that a deserved respect will be its pride.”

    He contended that the success of Nigeria’s democracy depends on democratically enlightened and vibrant individuals.