Keeping them honest: University of Ilesa; Sacrifice by adeleke on the altar of unnecessary bitter politics and ego

By Akinyemi Fasakin

Goverance is supposed to be about the interests of the people but presently in Osun state, governance is about vendetta and unnecessary politics of bitterness. And this is why the University of Ilesa will not take off as planned and have intakes for the 2022/ 2023 academic session.

The announcement of the long overdue upgrade of the oldest state College of Education to a full fledged university by Alhaji Gboyega Oyetola was received with so much joy, indeed, it was a fulfilment of the ijesa age long dream.

The official approval and announcement  by the state governor then, had come after almost four years of diligent work on establishing a world class university with the then Osun State Government team and an array of outstanding academics of Ijesa extraction

In spite of the fact that we parade the best of academics in Ijesaland, having produced an arsenal of vice chancellor’s in Nigerian including governors of Ijesa extraction,  it took a non Ijesa man in the person of Gboyega Oyetola to wipe the tears of the Ijesa people after he had earlier restructured and brought back normalcy to the state’s educational system by returning schools to their earlier status and restoring their names

It is quite unfortunate that he didn’t get the electoral reward from us;  instead, some of our people decided to  pitch tent with the certificate forger, forgetting that his brother at a point also deviated the Ilesa water project thereby depriving us of water till date. We again allowed history to repeat itself, we have wronged Oyetola and his party, we seemingly forgot that against all odds, Oyetola birth the University of Ilesa after a well structured arrangement with great academics to see to the fruition of our great dream.

The Owa Obokun Ijesaland,  Oba Gabriel  Adekunle Aromolaran(Phd) galvanized the community support with the Asiwaju of Ijesaland, Yinka Fasuyi and Chief Akinwande Akinola, Sawe of Ijesaland, leading the team from the community with a promised of about two billion naira as a community support for the takeoff from us .

The then Governor insisted on a well mapped out sustainability plan for the proposed University . KPMG, a leading consultancy firm in Nigeria was engaged and the issue of sustainability was clearly sorted out with a robust advisory work plan for the smooth take off before the announcement of the university. The Osun House of Assembly passed it into law, the governor appended his signature and signed it into law. It was gazetted and captured in the 2023 budget.

With a well-developed academic brief and fiscal master plan, gladly, the National Universities Commission (NUC) gave approval and issued a provisional license for the University as the 220th in Nigeria .JAMB , NYSC and TETFund were directed to recognize the institution in subsequent operation and as a matter of fact JAMB listed the university for admission for 2022/ 2023 academic session, having certified all requirements for successful takeoff of the university

 Alas, there was a change in government owing to electoral manipulation as ruled by the  Osun election petition tribunal and the incumbent Governor decided to play politics with no other thing than our age long dream, suspending the already constituted governing council with the likes of Professor Isaac Adewole, a former VC UI, Professor Sola Akinrinade ,pioneer VC UNIOSUN, Professor Labo Poopola a former VC UNIOSUN, Prof Mrs Oluyemisi Obilade, a former VC Tai Solarin University and the likes of our respected High Chief Akinwande  Akinola, who has now angrily resigned and  Rasheed Sarumi. These are eminent Ijesa personality with records of distinction  .

 The government also suspended the Vice Chancellor of the university , former provost of the College of Medicine of the Obafemi Awolowo University Prof  Kayode Ijaduola and other principal officers . Our dream of having in takes after JAMB had listed our University of Ilesa on the brochure got punctured on the altar of unnecessary politics and ego

I honestly don’t expect anything less from a man who was still struggling to forge a mere secondary school certificate at 60. At least, the court had established a case of forgery against him. So we expect the police to prosecute him for forgery and perjury, to serve as lesson to others.

To add salt to our injury, and against all appeal that the university should take off in spite of any “challenge“ noticed by the Adeleke government, the government set up a review committee of some baby professors to review the work of the likes of late Professor Ibidapo Obe who became a professor in 1983; he was a two term Vice Chancellor of UNILAG and the former chairman,  Committee of Vice Chancellors, this was a position he held about 15 years ago, and the likes of Professor Emeritus Olu Aina, who was a dean, Faculty of Education at ABU when the chairman of the review panel set up by Adeleke was a mere secondary school student; what an insult. This same professor Olu Aina was on the implementation committee that established the then Oyo State University, Ogbomoso now LAUTECH in 1989

For Govenor Ademola Adeleke to further ridicule us, he included on the review committee, one Prof Jumoda Lukman, his kinsman, a professor from LAUTECH who has spent less than two years on the professorial cadre to review the works of the likes of Professor Olu Aina and late Professor Ibidapo Obe. I’m sure Jumoda would be in primary school when late Professor Ibidapo Obe became a professor in 1983.

Adeleke had a professor, Oyesoji Aremu also on the panel to review the works of the likes of Professor Issac Adewole. The said Professor Oyesoji Aremu was a nominee of the immediate past speaker of Osun House of Assembly, Hon Najeem Salam,  and Professor Oyesoji did not become a Professor until after Professor Adewole became the VC of UI.

Politics is supposed to be about the interests of the people but for Osun state government, it is about vendetta,  well you can’t give what you don’t have. At least, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola is happy now that his preferred governorship candidate has smashed the age long dream of the Ijesa’s. At least Aregbesola also had an opportunity to give us this university but he didn’t.I’m sure he’s glad now that the bitter pills of not having a university has been forced on us. We should remember that it took the effort of  Oyetola to reverse the name of our Ilesa Grammar School from the Aregbesola Ilesa High School . We should all hope that the Supreme Court will restore Gboyega Oyetola quickly to come back and bring life into the withered University of Ilesa just the way he brought back life into our secondary education.

Applications for university for this session via JAMB is closed already. So the hope of us having intakes in the university is dashed.  We the Ijesa, would redeem our image by supporting all Oyetola’s candidates particularly  in the forthcoming election.

I shall unleash Sanpona on anyone who tries to bring the gospel of Atiku, another Fulani man to my doorstep or any candidate of Adeleke. One thing I know for sure is the University of Ilesa has come to stay, the journey might however be longer

Bobaseye Akinyemi Olusegun Fasakin is Board of Trustees Chairman, Ijesa People In Diaspora Foundation (IPID-F) He writes this piece from United States of America(USA)

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