By Emmanuel Edukugho
Attestation to former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s love for education came from eminent persons across the world at the Maiden Convocation of Bells University of Technology (BUT), Ota, Ogun State, for the conferment of degrees and presentation of prizes, last Saturday.
The ceremony also involved installation of the first chancellor, Professor Akinlawon Ladipo Mabogunje.
List of Graduating Students Bachelor of Science Degree (BSC) 2008/2009 session, showed a total of thirteen (13) graduands from College of Natural and Applied Sciences, four of them in first class, six in second class upper and three coming out in second class lower. The Departments of Biological Sciences (Microbiology) had three Chemical Sciences (Biochemistry) had one, and Physical Sciences (physics with electronics) producing four graduands.
Professor Isaac Adebayo Adeyemi, Vice-Chancellor, in his address, took a retrospective look saying that the idea for Bells University of Technology was conceived by the desire of the Bells Educational Foundation to establish a unique university where the good foundation given to products of its secondary school and other secondary schools could be built upon.
“To ensure uniqueness, the foundation decided to establish a University that would offer courses which would support relevant and sustainable technologies that were transferable, ICT-driven, and at the cutting edge of science and technology.”
On 9th June 2005, the Bells Educational Foundation was issued with a licence for the operation of a private university. Bells University of Technology.
“In view of the desire to commence both administrative and academic activities at the University within the academic session, NUC approved that the Ota site situated along the Bells Drive, off Ota-Idiroko Road, which had physical structures and some facilities in place, would serve as the take-off site of the University.”
Adeyemi said the University was pursuing a 3-phased development of its academic programmes which would culminate in the establishment of six colleges. The six colleges approved by the National Universities Commission are College of Natural and Applied Sciences, College of Food Sciences, College of Information and Communications Technology, College of Engineering, College of Environmental Sciences and College of Management Sciences.
Commencement of academic and students’ enrolment began on Sunday, 23rd October and Monday, 24th October, 2005 with the arrival of the first few students for clearance and payment of school fees.
He congratulated the graduating students, describing them as our “first fruits”, while also rejoicing with their parents and guardians.
“These past four sessions, Bells University of Technology had been nurturing the academic pursuit of you graduating students, laying a solid educational foundation through lectures and tutorials, through theories and practicals, and through examinations and continuous assessment tests,” adding, “the University is happy for you all as you have thoroughly satisfied its academic and moral expectations.”
Immediate past President of Ghana, John Agyekum Kufuor was among the three eminent persons conferred with honorary degrees of Doctor of Science (D.Sc. Honoris Causa).
The other two are Ambassador Andrew Young, former United States permanent representative to the UN, and Professor Bartholomew Okechukwu Nnaji, a former Federal Minister of Science and Technology, who had published nine books in a row, all of them masterpieces that included the legendary Theory of Automated Robot Assembly and Programming and Computer Integrated Manufacturing and Engineering which won him the M. Eugene Merchant Best Book Award in 1994.
Speaking on behalf of the three honorary degree awardees, Mr. Kufuor, an outstanding scholar who studied law at Lincoln’s Inn, London where he was called to the English Bar in 1961 at the age of 22, before proceeding to Oxford University for his BA degree in 1964 in Economics, Philosophy and Politics, conferred, in Oxford’s tradition with MA degree of the University, thanked Bells University of Technology for honouring them.
“I’ve always believed that Obasanjo is one of the greatest African leaders with love for education. I believe in education as a tool for national development.”
In his citation, it was stated that in December 2000, Kufuor won Ghana’s presidential election and sworn in as president of Ghana on January 9, 2001. In December 2004, he was re-elected for his second and final term.
His period as president of Ghana was characterized by unprecedented economic growth and political stability.
Ogun State governor, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, in his own remarks at the convocation ceremony, described former President Olusegun Obasanjo, believed to be the promoter of Bells Tech, as “one of the greatest Nigerians alive who has embraced humility, sitting down there quietly and whose name was not even in the brochures of the university.”
Daniel prayed that the graduands will excel in life and make outstanding contributions to nation building. Minister of Education, Dr. Sam Egwu, congratulated the University for the maiden convocation.
He said that the Federal Government recognised the role of private investment in education and assured that government will provide conducive environment for establishment of private universities in the country.
Professor Akinlawon Mabogunje was installed as the first chancellor of Bells University of Technology.
Prof. Mabogunje’s field of specialisation is geography. He is said to have traversed the length and breadth of this universe preaching the gospel of Regional Geography, Urban Geography, Economic Geography and Historical Geography.
“There seems to be nothing said about Geography of the world that Professor Mabogunje has not said before in theses, and dissertations at conferences, Workshops and Seminars, in lectures, (private, public and inaugural); in books and articles in learned journals, and his enduring legacy of consultancy services,” according to the citation of him.
To quote Mabogunje in the discipline of Geography is to quote “a dependable, competent, and impeccable source.” Scholars in Geography all over the world, tumble over one another just to cite him, to footnote him and to acknowledge him, in order to give credence and credibility to their research works.
He has published over twenty books, and has to his credit, well over one hundred articles/reviews, published in learned journals based in London, Ibadan, California, Oxford, Chicago, Rome, Paris, New York, The Hague, Lagos, etc.
Love education my butt! I would rather be unlettered than be schooled in a school established with stolen public fund cum ‘private’ university. Who do those folks think they are kidding?
Until Obasanjo tell Nigerians where he got the money used to build his so-called private university since it is not disputable that he had no money to finance his political campaign in 1999, no descerning Nigerian would take him serious. It doesn’t even matter if he assembles a trillion Obamas to sing his praises.
well,a lot of people are castigating the man ‘obj’. Have we forgotten where we were coming from before he was elected as our President?.Those castigating him should think before they opened their mouth.This man took us took us out of IMF bondage that will have made Nigeria everlasting slave to the IMFInfact, the north should not complain at all.For one, he has given to them the best gift to mankind ‘EDUCATION’ called ‘ UBE’ JUST TO CLOSE THE GAP BETWEEN THE THE NORTH AND THE SOUTH.This generaion is still suffering from the military phobia.
Common my people- OBJ was your President, thrice might I add. He acquired friends along the way, big or small. What do you expect his guest to say. Insult him on the special day. OBJ’s record is there for everyone to see.
Love him or loathe him, OBJ is OBJ. History will continue to judge him. To me OBJ is like marmite, its either you love it or hate it.
I weep 4 Nigeria.
Who loves education? OBJ, that’s strange. Is it not his govt that stoped govt’s feeding in the universities ? as military head of state. In his second coming into govt as civilian president, he deliberately kill govt universitys & encourage private owned universitys with fees that are out of this world. Let the lover of education tell us how much does it cost a parent who has a child in Bell uni.
OBJ — Obasanjo- is the “BABA-” father in English. Father of Thieves! He has been stealing money from Nigeria since the seventies. For all the woes that every Nigerian has been through, those whose dreams were cut short, those whose lives were truncated, may this man face the wrath of the almighty ALLAH seven hundred and seventy seven times. He will get it before he leaves this world, Insha Allah!!
Whether Obasanjo like education or not prosperity will judge.
Nigerians are now being told that Obasanjo owns The Bells University. Ribadu and the AZUs (AZU of The Punch) of this world should be ashamed of themselves.
During the Obasanjo/Atiku feud, Ribadu opened his mouth to castigate Atiku for establishing AMTI/AMERICAN University in Yola. Ribadu shamelessly said it loud and clear that “Obasanjo is not the owner of The Bells University”. Gani Fawehinmi approached the courts to proof that Obasanjo owns the University but the outcome of the case was that Gani had no locus standi.
Obasanjo’s love for education is just like his love for Mama Iyabo. Before he became Head of State in 1976, feeding in Federal Universities was 50K / day but out of his love for education, he increased it to N1.50 / day. This was the cause of ‘Ali Must Go’ of 1978. Many indigent students did not come back to the university afterwards because of inability to pay.
Again, before he became President in 1999, accommodation was N90 per bed space in Federal Universities. He increased it to N10,000 without considering the poor. N90 though unrealistic, N10,000 was wickedness and insensitivity.
Kufuor, Nigerians are not deceived. We know those who want to wipe out illiteracy as against those greedy commercial leaders who want the children of Governors to be governors and the children of carpenters to remain carpenters. GOD DEY!!!
All these tribal people, please say the truth and be set free. Your OBJ came out of prison a poor man, and now succeeded in stealing your money meant for your education, good roads, electricity, health and well-being, and used it to rather run an expensive university for himself, and is not ashamed, including you, tufiakwa!!!
ASUU strike was worse during his insensitive leadership, and yet I hear somebody say he loves education. What a people! Kuffour must have remembered how such corrupt leaders were executed in Ghana by Jerry Rawlings, and Andrew Young knows that OBJ must have killed Nigerians by amassing such wealth because it cannot happen in the USA. My only solace is that God must do something that will surprise everybody one day, so that these type of leaders will see how vanity the world is!!!!