The Executive Secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund, TETFund, Arc. Sonny Echono, has urged Nigerians to embrace integrity, courage, compassion and dedication to public service, saying the country needs more citizens who place national interest above personal considerations.
Echono made the call in Ilorin on Monday while serving as Chairman of the occasion at the University of Ilorin, UNILORIN, Homecoming Celebration and Investiture Ceremony for Awards of Excellence, Distinguished Alumni and Unilorin Ambassadors.
The ceremony featured the homecoming of Professor Emeritus Is-haq Oloyede and the recognition of 30 other distinguished Nigerians for their contributions to education, humanity, national development and the growth of the university.
Echono described Oloyede as a distinguished Nigerian who had spent his entire adult life demonstrating hard work, integrity, courage, compassion and commitment to public service.
According to him, Nigeria needs more people willing to uphold these values and dedicate themselves to the service of humanity.
He said celebrating individuals who had distinguished themselves in their respective fields was important, as it would not only encourage the honourees to do more but also inspire younger generations to emulate their achievements.
“We don’t tend to celebrate the right people enough. Our celebrations are often full of funerals, birthdays and burials. But when you celebrate individuals, you give them the impetus to do more.
“More importantly, you encourage others to emulate them so that they can also be celebrated,” Echono said.
He added that honours and recognition remained important tools for promoting excellence and sustained performance, stressing that individuals who contributed positively to society deserved to be recognised while they were alive.
Echono particularly commended Oloyede for the courage he demonstrated in tackling examination malpractice during his tenure as Registrar and Chief Executive of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB.
He recalled that Oloyede confronted networks involved in examination malpractice and worked with security agencies to dismantle what he described as organised cartels operating across the country.
According to Echono, the fight was challenging because those involved in the illicit practice constituted a powerful network and frequently issued threats.
He recalled participating in operations aimed at investigating and dismantling the networks, including an exercise in which suspects arrested from different parts of the country were interviewed to establish the identities of those behind examination malpractice.
Echono said the exercise yielded valuable information that contributed to efforts to sanitise the examination system.
He also commended Oloyede for his compassion and commitment to inclusive education, describing him as a leading advocate for providing opportunities for persons with disabilities.
He noted that under Oloyede’s leadership at JAMB, efforts went beyond providing facilities for candidates with hearing and visual impairments to supporting organisations that prepared persons with disabilities for tertiary education.
“Today in our universities, I understand JAMB even instituted an award for institutions who admit students with disabilities. Nigeria will remain grateful to you, sir,” Echono said.
Also speaking, the Vice-Chancellor of the university, Prof. Wahab Egbewole, described Oloyede as a worthy product and ambassador of the institution whose academic achievements, administrative leadership and commitment to national development had brought honour to the university.
Egbewole said the professorial chair was established as a befitting way of recognising Oloyede’s contributions to scholarship, leadership and the development of the university.
He appealed to stakeholders and guests to support the N250 million endowment, describing Oloyede as a highly disciplined, courageous and outstanding Unilorite and an “uncommon Better by Far Ambassador.”
The Vice-Chancellor also challenged recipients of the various awards to reciprocate the honour by supporting development projects at the university.
He urged recipients of the Awards of Excellence to identify projects they could execute, while distinguished alumni were encouraged to jointly identify and fund projects that would bear their names.
He similarly called on the Unilorin Ambassadors to collectively support a project for the institution, expressing the hope that the projects would be completed before the next edition of the honours programme.
