Ademola Adeleke, the Governor of Osun State, has shared that he took a self-imposed exile following the 2018 governorship election to obtain a degree and better equip himself for the 2022 polls.
Speaking at the Adeleke University’s 9th undergraduate and 5th postgraduate convocation ceremony in Ede, the governor highlighted the significance of education in shaping one’s future, emphasising that unwavering determination can overcome any time constraints in the pursuit of knowledge.
He said, ‘Today marks a year since my election as the governor of Osun State. Four years before then, in 2018, I was rigged out and our mandate was stolen. I was subjected to the worst personality attacks and assaults in Osun political history.’
‘After a manipulated judicial process, I went on self-exile for two major reasons. Firstly, to escape the evil plot of enemies who were not satisfied with stealing the people’s mandate. Secondly, to complete my degree programmes especially as my educational qualifications dominated the 2018 campaigns.’
‘Dr Deji encouraged me to move ahead. Before I went for self-exile, he called me to a meeting; he said I have been subjected to a lot of things, that I am not educated, he then advised that I should go to America for schooling.’
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‘He said the only thing I can do for Osun people if I am ready to be governor is to get educated, I must complete my education, without completing it, I should forget my governorship ambition. At my age then, 60. It was not an easy task but I did it.’
‘I successfully re-enrolled and completed my degree programme. I came back to re-contest in 2022 as a brand new graduate. The rest is now history. What is the lesson? Our age must never be a barrier to educational pursuit. What we need is commitment and passion to succeed.’
In his address titled; ‘Change Begins with You’, Dr. Deji Adeleke, the proprietor and Pro Chancellor of the University, advised the graduands to initiate a change project within themselves, aiming to create a new and prosperous nation rather than laying blame on leaders for the country’s challenges.
‘In Nigeria, we blamed the leaders. What about the followership? Citizenship comes with responsibility. Building a nation does not rest on leadership alone. When everybody contribute their quota, the nation grows and develop.’
‘You can start by holding your leaders accountable. Developed democracies are what they are because of active citizenship. Young ones can still build a new Nigeria. There are many reasons for my optimism. If you are determined to change the narrative, to make a difference, you can do it within ten to fifteen years.’
‘Look at Nigerians in diaspora. Best minds in American medicine are Nigerians. In IT, Nigerians are next to India. They do well because they function in a society where followership holds the leadership to account for good governance.’
‘Change the narrative. Let the change for a positive and new Nigeria starts with you. Let not have youth corpers colluding with election riggers. Let’s stop followers vandalising public infrastructures. Let’s put an end to young graduates engaging in thoughtless money rituals instead of entrepreneurship,’ he said.
Vice Chancellor Professor Solomon Adebola, in his convocation speech, celebrated the accomplishments of the 537 first-degree graduates, revealing that 53 of them distinguished themselves with First-class honors, 326 earned Second-class upper, 154 achieved Second-class lower, and an exceptional 4 graduates merited third-class honors.
Furthermore, the Vice Chancellor shared the University’s impressive accomplishments, producing a total of 31 Ph.D. graduands, 39 Master’s degree recipients, four postgraduate diploma holders, and one exceptional individual awarded a Master of Philosophy degree.