The Ooni of Ile-Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, presented ₦19 million in cash prizes to top-performing students and innovative lecturers at the 40th convocation ceremony of The Polytechnic, Ibadan, at the weekend.
The Ooni, an alumnus of the institution and the Permanent Chairman of the Southern Nigeria Traditional Rulers Council, emphasized that the awards reflect his dedication to fostering academic excellence and technological growth within Nigerian higher education.
The ceremony’s top honour went to Kemisola Yusuf, a Microbiology graduate with a 3.87 CGPA, who received ₦6m from the monarch.
In addition, the best graduating students from each of the six faculties were awarded ₦1.5m each.
Two faculty members were also recognized for their contributions to research, receiving ₦2m each through the Ooni Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi Award for Innovation and Technology.
The monarch spoke fondly of his days as an accountancy student three decades ago and credited the polytechnic as the foundation of his success.
“This citadel of learning remains my foundation in life. I left this great institution 30 years ago as an accountancy student, and it is a thing of joy to reconnect with my foundation today, three decades after my graduation,” he said.
The monarch also reminisced about his student days, noting that he never imagined his future while navigating campus life at the time.
“Many years ago, I remember my days in Unity Hall and Ramat Hall, facing the realities of studentship without knowing what the future held for me. Today, by the grace of God, I am the Ooni of Ife,” he said.
Persecondnews reports that earlier, the Acting Rector, Dr. Taiwo Abideen Lasisi, delivered a wide-ranging address that focused on institutional growth, student self-reliance, and a call for major structural reforms in Nigeria’s education system.
To end the disparity between polytechnic and university graduates, appealed to federal and state governments to convert all polytechnics in the country into degree-awarding institutions.
Lasisi said focusing on Bachelor of Technology (BTech) degrees would finally end the “age-long disparity” and discrimination between polytechnic and university graduates.
He cited the United Kingdom and China as examples where technical education has been elevated to drive national development, urging Governor Seyi Makinde to “kickstart the process” by making Ibadan Poly a degree-awarding one.
On vocational skills, the Rector noted that none of the 3,393 graduands were leaving the institution without acquiring at least one practical vocational skill.
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