BOUESTI 2024 Council Retreat: Olanipekun’s Senate Building Project To Begin In February

By Mercy Arogunjo 

Chief Wole Olanipekun, Senior Advocate of Nigeria has announced his readiness to begin the construction of the new Senate Building he had earlier promised to donate to the Bamidele Olumilua University of Education, Science and Technology, Ikere Ekiti in the month of February, 2024. 

Chief Olanipekun, a prominent son of Ikere Ekiti in Ekiti State made his decision public while delivering a lecture titled “Making BOUESTI A 21st Century University: Expectations from the Governing Council” at the 2024 Council Retreat of the Institution held at the Luxury Landing Apartments located at the Ajebamidele area of Ado Ekiti, in the State Capital of Ekiti State on Wednesday. 

Speaking further, Olanipekun during the Retreat with the central theme tagged: “The Wheel of Progress For Rare Achievements in the 21st Century University”, focused mainly on the need to discuss and gather suggestions on how to truly make the BOUESTI Ikere-Ekiti a 21st century institution.

Olanipekun while espousing on the first topic for the BOEUSTI 2024 Council Retreat which is “Making BOUESTI A 21st Century University: Expectations from the Governing Council”, explained how out of his love for the University, pledged to singlehandedly donate a Senate Building to the Bamidele Olumilua University of Education, Science and Technology in Ikere-Ekiti. 

It was there he publicly announced that work on the Senate Building will commence in the month of February, 2023, with an assurance that it would be completed within the period of 8 months. 

Olanipekun however expressed his regrets on the failure of the immediate past Governor of Ekiti State, Dr Kayode Fayemi for failing to ensure the current Federal University of Oye Ekiti comes to Ikere Ekiti. 

He identified the leadership style of former Governor Kayode Fayemi as the factor responsible to the changing of the University from Ikere Ekiti to Oye local government area, which happened to be his local government area. 

The Ikere Ekiti born legal luminary came heavily on Fayemi for dribbling him, thereby preventing the citing of the University at Ikere Ekiti. “The Federal University presently at Oye Ekiti would have been known as Federal University of Ikere Ekiti, if not for the style of Fayemi’s government”, Olanipekun lamented. 

Olanipekun went on to describe former Governor Fayemi as a subtle and cony individual whose body language will always be difficult to predict or determined.  

Chief Olanipekun however appreciated the present Governor of Ekiti State, Mr Biodun Oyebanji for having the Bamidele Olumilua University of Education, Science and Technology at heart. He described Governor Oyebanji as the solution to Ekiti State. He counselled him to continue in his good ways, as there is probability that he would be the future leader of the Yorubas.

Olanipekun explained further that the Council Retreat will help enlighten the Council members on policies making. 

He emphasized on the need for the Council to map out its strategies on how best it would move to meet up with the current technological age and speed in the world. He also added that the retreat should design a direction plan for the university in order for it to attain the first century University status.

Wole Olanipekun told the Council that the position they are now is temporal, urging them to do their best to leave a landmark in the university. 

In his own words, the Vice Chancellor of Bamidele Olumilua University of Education, Science and Technology, Ikere Ekiti, Professor Victor Adeoluwa, revealed that the institution has an experienced and renowned professor as a pro chancellor who has been in the university system for almost 40 years. 

Professor Adeoluwa urged the members of the University management to see the appointment of Professor Oladipo Aina as Pro Chancellor as one that will help to reduce their stress and eliminate rivalry in the University environment.

Also, the Pro – Chancellor, Professor Oladipo Aina noted that the Council is made up of experienced people. He said the students are resuming over the weekend for their final year and he emphasised that they will graduate their first set of students in 2024.  

Speaking with Mallam Yusuf Alli, SAN, another keynote speaker at the retreat, who spoke on the lecture topic titled: “Leading the Vision and Strategies for advancement in the 21st Century University” where he advised the management of the Institution to know 

that there is no uniform academic culture in Nigeria higher institutions, thereby calling on the universities in the Country to imbibe a culture and a tradition that suits them.  

He encouraged the university Council to set aside 20 to 30 percent of their IGR for research purposes to enable them come up with a good academic culture. 

Mallam Alli described the attitude of the members of the country’s higher institution management towards the students as appalling and terrible. He advised that the university system should promote democracy instead of being hostile to students. 

He further said the university management should have an advisory board who they can always run to when challenges arise.

Yusuf Alli also advocated for the promotion of local contents that would help the university system in the Country to sustain a lasting relationship with there host communities.