OBAFEMI AWOLOWO UNIVERSITY OR UNIVERSITY OF LAGOS: ‘THERE IS ONLY ONE UNIVERSITY’

‘THERE IS ONLY ONE UNIVERSITY’

In the early 1980s whilst my nascent Christian faith was not a barrier to the increasing bond of friendship that was developing amongst Ayowale Ogunye, Oladele Olawoye and I, slowly but surely our paths diverged.  The divergence occurred on account of the progress with their studies and the stalemate with mine. I was marking time at King’s College, Lagos while they progressed to University of Ife and Repton College, Derby in the United Kingdom respectively.  This was a huge but inevitable wrench but we maintained regular contact.  It is interesting to note that through ’Dele, his younger sister Mopelola, a dark petite, pretty and very astute girl became ‘my school daughter’ and the bond with the family remains strong.  I would spend many Fridays visiting her at their campus home and offering any encouragement I could give.  Naturally, it evinced some suspicion on the part of her mother thinking I might be nursing some romantic inclinations towards her daughter but that was always further from the truth. 

The University of Lagos, Akoka campus staff quarters where they lived was nicely laid out with each of the Professor’s houses crowed around with low hedges of the bougainvillea variety and gardens surrounding it and of course a garage and two roomed boys’ quarters to complement it.  Other staff quarters came in flats but were all decently apportioned with lots of space and boys quarters allocated to each flat.  Inside the houses, the sitting areas were nicely set out with spacious rooms, a dinning and a study on the ground floor.  The master bedroom on the upper floor was usually en-suite and the other two rooms were of reasonable sizes.  The roads were smooth, consisting of two lanes and made of concrete in contrast to those of Abule-Oja where we lived.  Those who lived in the quarters were cushioned from the harsh realities of life outside.

’Dele, Ayo and I had formed a close bond from our attendance at the summer school held during the long vacation at the University of Lagos Faculty of Education.  Here we reunited with many old Staff School mates and made new acquaintances from other schools.  I was known to preach to a couple of the students and was listened to but many just found the whole thing bizarre and hilarious.  Once while visiting ’Dele’s home in the staff quarters with others, which included ’Damola Adeyeye and I led a number of us in a lunch prayer session in the sitting room.  However, in the middle of the session, Dele’s father, the law Professor, Mr. C.O. Olawoye arrived, interrupted us in dramatic fashion, and proceeded to lecture us on the dangers of religious extremism!

I remember that every holiday, back from Ile-Ife, Ayo who also lived at the University of Lagos staff quarters with his father a Professor of Chemical Engineering, his mother, his siblings, ’Yinka, ’Tayo, 'Bukola and ’Deji, would, on my visits, entertain me with tales about life in Ife, of its glory, its beauty and the new vista of opportunities it opened up.  He would entertain me with ‘gist’ about the Elite Club and its intrigues.  At home, I also received some interesting accounts from my twin sister, Folashade, through letters or when she ventured home on holidays.  I always suspected that there might be some slight exaggerations but I was proved wrong.  I was full of envy but was torn between going to Ife or settling into University of Lagos near where we lived.   It would have been very advantageous to be in close proximity to Panaf Olajide Olakanmi who now worked at the University so that I could effortlessly resume my career in student politics.

However, there were two hurdles to cross, that of the Joint Admissions and Matriculations Board (JAMB) and the School Certificate Examinations.  There was a mix up which caused some confusion with my JAMB registration, which was only resolved thanks to the efforts of Dr. E. A. Akinluyi, the Director of Planning at University of Lagos.  I had consistently scored highly in my Fifth Form examinations except in the subject of Mathematics. This was a disappointment to my mother because despite all the investments she made in providing me various Mathematics tutors I simply could not hack it.  I acquired a reputation with a few classmates of scampering out through the classroom windows on the arrival of the Math’s teacher, I simply dreaded the subject and I was no longer interested in giving it the benefit of doubt.  

Eventually I received my School Certificate results and I was sorely disappointed, not because I was unsuccessful.  However, I was unable to obtain the highest distinctions in all my seven subjects only managing distinctions in five of them.  Of course, I knew there was no hope for me with Mathematics where I managed a pass but Biology?  I thought I deserved more that a credit and Oral English, a pass?  I thought after my debating experience I could speak English with effortless diction only to be proved wrong.  In any case, my results were excellent enough for me to be admitted into university. 

Now I had to await the JAMB results to see if I would be admitted into the Ife Law Faculty.  The cut off mark for Law was very high, you needed to score over 300 out of 400 to be in with a chance.  In my case, I fell short, I only scored 278, it seemed my mother’s dream of me studying law would not be realised for the moment.  The study of History, my second choice, beckoned me like my father before or I could take up the option of a return to King’s College for ‘A’ Levels so I could retake JAMB, this was the dilemma I faced.

Taking cue from the path my father took I settled for History at Ife but obfuscated when telling my friends what I was studying.  I felt rather inferior to those studying a professional course.  In the past I had long arguments with Ayo Ogunye when I suggested to him I wanted to study Political Science, he always looked at me puzzled, wondering what for?  When I pointed him to the example of my father, he simply responded by suggesting times had changed.   I had the opportunity during the long vacation of spending some time in Ile-Ife with Professor ’Kayode Adetugbo.  On my first visit I was blown off my feet by its majestic beauty, the immaculately kept lawns, the variety of flowers and the vitality it embodied.  

The entrance into the university concealed the full extent of its beauty but as you left the gates behind you and approached, venturing deeper into its grounds much more awaited you.  You were slowly but deliberately seduced into the bosom of its environs as it emerged like a tantalising painting from an arts gallery, the beauty of the campus was revealed before you, its magnificence enticed you and its architecture enraptured you, rendering you speechless!   There was indeed only one university in the world and any hankering for the University of Lagos simply faded into oblivion.  Professor ’Kayode Adetugbo with whom I stayed with was a union activist in the University and he regularly played host to many political activists on the campus and it is from him I received my first introduction in the political life at Ife.

On the university’s resumption day, the 2^nd of December 1984 my twin sister and I with my mother driving travelled to Ile-Ife in our crammed blue Nissan estate car, which appeared to be anchored down with so much of my sister’s luggage.  After driving ponderously for four hours, we arrived at ‘Great Ife’.  I entered Ife armed with lots of cash, some acquired from my mother but most of it through the generosity of my uncle Dr. Benjamin Abimbola Adigun who was always kind to me.  Dr. Adigun, my father’s second cousin was a director of AGIP OIL, tall, very regal in bearing, and very wise, a man of great means who spoke Italian effortlessly.

I embarked on a spending spree, eating lavishly, sampling a variety of soft drinks and visiting the Oduduwa Hall to watch the movies.  Less than three weeks later in 1985 my spending spree came to an abrupt end when my wallet containing all my cash of over a thousand Naira was stolen during a film show at Oduduwa Hall.

While my twin was guaranteed some accommodation in Mozambique Hall, there was no chance I would get one on account of late receipt of my admission letter.  However, my uncle, Professor ’Kayode Adetugbo agreed to harbour me temporarily in his staff quarters whilst I settled down.  However, that was very far from my mind, I was already plotting on how I would seize the political scene in Ife by storm.  Academics was also very remote from my mind; I reasoned that if I could succeed in my acquisition of power at King’s College, Lagos there was no reason why at University of Ife it could not be my oyster but here I was to receive a rude awakening.