On Tuesday, November 17, the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) conferred on Aare Afe Babalola the Honorary Fellowship of the Society during its annual conference in Akure, Ondo State. This is one among the Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and educationist’s many awards, whose compelling story, Assistant Life Editor, TERH AGBEDEH, captures in this report.
In his autobiography, Impossibility Made Possible, Aare Afe Babalola describes himself as a self-made man who “is proud of the qualitative primary education” he had obtained. Indeed, after primary education there was no conceivable way that he could have achieved his desire of furthering his education. He however did not allow this to deter him for, by private study, he went ahead to earn two degrees, first in economics and then law. He was also a teacher at various times in his life including being a pupil teacher, a secondary school teacher, vice principal, university lecturer and administrator.
His impeccable record at the University of Lagos (UNILAG) is there for everyone to see. As pro-chancellor and chairman of the governing council between 2002 and 2007, Babalola turned things around at the university.
For seven years from 2000, he was pro-chancellor at UNILAG and many people have testified that that was indeed the golden era of that institution. In 2005 and 2006 he was named the best pro-chancellor by the Federal Government, which, in a white paper issued in 2003 on the Visitation Panel to UNILAG, said: “His leadership style was exemplary. The leadership style of his council was characterised by optimum time and resources utilisation and a good team system”.
Throughout his tenure at UNILAG, Babalola paid his hotel bills and donated his sitting allowances to the university’s endowment fund. He donated a 500-seater lecture theatre to the institution and established a robust endowment scholarship system for indigent students.
He went on to found the Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti (ABUAD) six years ago, and it has been growing from strength to strength, with recognitions from all over the world including by UNESCO, which has described it as a world class university.
“This development and my experience of dwindling qualities on standard of education in University of Lagos provided the urgent need to establish a first class university to serve as a benchmark for other universities,” he was quoted as saying.
Apart from the NSE award, Babalola has been bestowed with the Doctor of Laws, honoris causa of the University of London, at the Barbican Centre, during the prestigious institution’s 2015 graduation ceremony. The same university had honoured Nelson Mandela (Doctor of Science, Economics) in 1996 and Archbishop Desmond Tutu (Doctor of Divinity) 2008.
The university’s Vice Chancellor, Sir Adrian Smith, responding to a mail said: “We are indeed delighted that Chief Afe Babalola will be accepting the honorary degree from the University of London because he has an exceptional record in both his personal achievements and in the difference he has made to others, particularly in the legal profession in Nigeria.”
The European Business Assembly, in March, 2011, appointed Babalola an honorary professor of International University and invited him to attend the Oxford Summit of Leaders. Its Director General, John Netting, in a letter, said: “we are pleased to inform you that you have been awarded ‘Honorary Professorship of International University’. It will be a pleasure to highlight your remarkable reputation and successful professional achievements which are shown by our research. For EBA and its National Committees, the determining factors for your nomination were: initiatives for education development in Nigeria, promoting education amongst young people and active implementation of best international practices.”
True to form like the lover of education that he is, the eminent lawyer identified the hurdles on the path of Nigeria for the nation to achieve sustainable infrastructural development in his keynote address at the NSE event, which also honoured Ondo State Governor, Olusegun Mimiko, and the Chairman of Innoson Industries, Innocent Chukwuma.
Babalola said that the negative influence of a corrupt and retrogressive political class; lack of proper funding and finance necessary to drive infrastructural development and overdependence on foreign technology, goods and services for local project, were the main drawbacks.
He also listed the weakening of local infrastructural development and maintenance capabilities; erosion of a culture of technological innovation and research in the country’s universities; and lopsided manpower deployment in engineering and technology institutions and ministries as the other hindrances to national infrastructural development.
Anyone who has been to ABUAD will conclude that he knows what he is talking about. The six-year-old university is better equipped than many that have been around for many years. As a matter of fact, the NSE declared the engineering programme at ABUAD as a template for engineering education in Nigeria after a recent tour.
While presenting its license in November, 2009, the National Universities Commission (NUC) described ABUAD as a “reference point”. The Chairman, Screening Committee on Private Universities, Prof. Jibril Aminu had then said that: “The Afe Babalola University has now become a reference point for the NUC. They helped us to raise the quality bar for private universities. Those coming after Afe Babalola University will have a higher hurdle to scale.”
The 86-year-old but very agile Babalola said at the Akure event that infrastructural development is economically sustainable if it results in the growth of the economy, job creation and eradication of poverty.
“Weak infrastructure affects economic growth. Difficulties accessing markets via crumbling roads or clogged up ports and vast expenditure on generators required to avoid blackouts are regularly cited as the biggest challenges to investors in this country.
“The focus of the governments must be to fund and support projects that could stimulate economic growth. Any so-called infrastructure project that does not contribute to the goals of removing barriers to economic growth or support economic productivity is, in my opinion, a white elephant project and an unsustainable one.”
Drawing from his experience in the building of ABUAD, he declared that national infrastructural development must be erected on economic, social and environmental sustainability.
While praising the National Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan (NIIMP), he said it was “a necessary statement of intent that is in line with global trends in infrastructural development.”
The legal luminary is intent on leaving a legacy for humanity much like his indelible mark on legal education and practice going by the near frenzy with which he works even at his age. A fitting testimony for the man who made his name and fortune from legal practice is his industry and diligence in the sprawling ABUAD built on 130 hectares. Constructed within eight months, it has the power to take the breath of any visitor away. Starting with 240 students in January 2010, the university presently has 6,200 students.
Fully air-conditioned with state-of-art facilities, the university has residence for all students and teachers. Presently, there are five college buildings equipped with modern teaching facilities including e-learning platform, electronic boards, virtual library and ICT centre with 3,000 desktop computers, all connected to the internet. The institution offers academic programmes in law, social and management sciences, sciences, engineering, education, arts and humanities, agriculture, medicine, nursing, medical laboratory science and geology. There are seven huge hostels. The institution has a modern cafeteria, a 500-capacity auditorium, a virtual library and a talents discovery centre.
The latest addition is the College of Engineering, built on two-and-a-half acres, offering seven courses including mechatronics. The university, which produces much of the food consumed there, recently commenced post-graduate programmes.
Convinced that it was the high quality of instructions he received at the primary school that laid the foundation for his educational achievements, he has established an international school comprising a creche, nursery school, primary school, junior and senior secondary schools; and post-secondary school. Unhappy that such quality of education is rare in most Nigerian schools today, the innovative Babalola said that the international school was designed to enable children receive functional and qualitative education from early age and to prepare them for university and beyond.
The revered legal icon is a philanthropist, Officer of the Order of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the Commander of the Order of Niger, former Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council of the University of Lagos and former Chairman of the Committee of Pro-Chancellors of Nigerian Universities. He was also winner of the best Pro-Chancellor award in 2005 and 2006, winner of Queen Victoria Commemorative Award, Socrates Award of European Business Assembly in Oxford, UK and member of Rector of Europe.
In fulfilment of the humanitarian philosophy of its founder, no fewer than 500 students of ABUAD are presently enjoying some form of bursary at the institution. All indigent and very brilliant students are eligible for this rare gesture from a man who appreciates the value of education. Besides awarding full scholarship to brilliant students, loans and bursaries are available for the less-privileged and physically challenged students.
At the third convocation ceremony of the university this year, Babalola gave N250,000 to all graduates of agricultural science as start-up capital for their own enterprises thereby making the impossible possible in the lives of these ones.
Babalola personifies a rare role model deep in self- discipline; one who brims with passion, the pursuit of excellence and a commitment to give back to humanity. Posterity will never forget him.
