“Leadership is not a luxury to be enjoyed. It is a pain to be endured; a sacrifice to be given. And only the true ‘selfless’ can successfully pull it through” – Oredola Ibrahim
I use this medium to congratulate the newest landlords of the Kunle Adepeju Memorial Students’ Union Building. I salute your doggedness and courage. Beyond making the necessary compliment, I acknowledge the fact that it takes sacrifice and altruistic spirit for someone to offer oneself to serve one’s fellows in a leadership position. Therefore, accept my heartfelt congratulation.
The election that promised to be full of drama, twists, intrigues and shenanigans eventually became a one horse race, no thanks to the tactless, clueless, insensitive and insensible joke a good for nothing fellow and his irresponsible campaign manager made on one fateful Saturday. A genuine Vice Presidential hopeful was intimidated to step down only for the good-for-nothing fellow to make jests of us all. Democracy is a bad system of government. Pardon my digression.
Having said that, the writer posits that leadership of the Students’ Union, University of Ibadan is not a platform for clueless and opportunistic fellows who think since the maximum support of many a stakeholder was all it needed for them to win the election; they can still bask on that to navigate through to the end. It doesn’t work that way. The winners must know as a matter of honesty that their winning the election is not a sure measure of their popularity or acceptance on campus. Many of the victories are a product of alliances, permutations, nonsensical hall loyalty, sentiments and attractiveness of posters and jingles. Many of the determining factors have nothing to do with the intellectual capabilities of w ho got the mandates of UItes. When it comes to the test of Aluta spirit, genuine acceptance by UItes, intellectual radicalism, many of the winners at the Saturday poll already knew they were no match for their opponents. Those with the best package lost the election in the premier varsity: a microcosm of the Nigerian macrocosm!
Without much ado, the job of taking the University of Ibadan Students’ Union to the next level should begin in earnest. I believe that, just like someone took us all for a ride by declaring ambitions she had not, eventually heating the polity unnecessarily, there are many among the eventual winners who took the whole electioneering process for a moonlight tale and even till now, that they have won the election. Such fellows are advised to honourably apologise to the University community and thereafter reject the mandate now, that they have not been sworn-in. It is better late than never.
Now that ’Nifemi has won the coveted prize, he needs to tell us in clear terms what the Project Work is all about. Whatever the shortcomings of Ahh Speaker led administration, some hopes were definitely raised by the Illuminating Changes Team. The Students’ Advocacy Council (SAC) was introduced and notwithstanding the increasing cases of Students’ Disciplinary Committee (SDC), the SAC is a success to a certain extent.
If the project work is a joint project, it will be expected that it incorporates Revolution Agenda as well as Proximity Agenda while Concurring to the E-Agenda of the Vice presidential elect. What is being said here is that all broken fences as a result of the bitterness in the electioneering should be mended as a matter of urgency. It is our fervent prayer that sanity will return to the system now that the election is over. I pray Mr Ojo earnestly begin the job of reconciling every disgruntled member of the union for the betterment of the administration. I do not in any way recommend contacting attention-seekers who found pleasure in deceiving the generality of UItes that they were running for positions they had no prowess to see through. Such people must be avoided.
Now that ‘Nifemi has won, we expect a dynamic leadership championed by dynamic and visionary presidency. For the past three to four years, the issue of increment in School Fees and Accommodation Fees has been a lingering fear in hearts of UItes. It is hoped the nightmare will not see the light of the day during his tenure. It is a bad time to be a student of the University of Ibadan – a time when the management’s seriousness about the welfare of students is put to serious test of sincerity. Residents of Obafemi Awolowo Hall are still lamenting the negligence they are suffering from the University management and the leadership of the Students’ Union (well, maybe before the present administration).
I sincerely hope UItes will not regret voting another gentleman unionist to the helms of affairs of their Union. I remember with anger the parting remark of Prof. Adewole on Odesola Oluwafemi (Huntershola) whom he described as “a perfect gentleman of the highest order”. Need I say what the phrase denotes and connotes?
On a concluding note, ’Nifemi must understand that no matter what any other person say about the present administration, contemporary standard of student unionism in University of Ibadan was raised. Can ’Nifemi boast of such theatrics that took place at the SRC Chamber on Wednesday, 23rd March, 2016? Does he have the audacity to look the Vice-Chancellor in the eye and say “don’t bobo us sir”? Time will tell.
