The Onimesi of Imesi-Ekiti, in the Ayekire Local Government Area of Ekiti State, Oba Festus Olatunji Olatunde, has commended the Chancellor of the Ekiti State University, Dr. Tunji Olowolafe, for his commitment to a N1 billion endowment fund to power agribusiness for the graduates of the institution.
The monarch explained that the novel concept would unlock Ekiti’s potential in agriculture, generate employment, and create wealth in the system by ballooning the state’s self-sufficiency in food production with the involvement of academically savvy youth in commercial farming.
Oba Olatunde said the state and Nigeria at large have been groaning under the burden of criminal proclivities like internet fraud codenamed Yahoo Boys, banditry, ritual killings, and kidnapping, saying Dr Olowolafe and EKSU’s innovation will stamp out these social menaces when youth are profitably engaged.
The Are-Ekiti-born medical practitioner and business guru, during the last convocation of the university, announced his intention to endow a staggering sum of one billion naira to spur farming investment and create a vista of opportunities for the graduates of the university in agribusiness.
Speaking at the scholastic event, attended by Governor Biodun Oyebanji, Dr Olowolafe said, “Today, your Excellency, the general discussion in Nigeria is about the cost of living and food security. All of us eat, but many of us do not spend time thinking about what we eat, how it is produced, and how it gets to our table.
“My view is that regardless of what we are studying at the university, we must all think about how we can do our bit to produce food. This means both the academic and student faculties must come together to think and act. This campus is located on very fertile land. Let us see how we can optimise the use of this land for agricultural purposes.”
Reacting to the lofty idea, in a statement he personally signed and made available to journalists on Thursday in Ado Ekiti, Oba Olatunde described the innovative thinking of Dr Olowolafe as being in alignment with Governor Oyebanji’s dream of making Ekiti attain food security through investment in commercial agriculture
The monarch said the medical practitioner had demonstrated patriotism by thinking outside the box to expend his hard-earned money and contacts to create wealth for Nigerians, saying this will go into annals of history as one singular initiative targeted at reducing poverty and joblessness among the youth’s ranks and file.
Oba Olatunde said with the astronomic and spiralling increase in the level of food prices, Nigerians now have no viable and dependable alternative than agriculture, which he said makes the impending endowment fund timely and well-conceived.
The royal father, who is a former Commissioner for Works, added that he was dazzled and highly elated that Dr. Olowolafe could be down to earth in thinking and embrace agriculture, despite his solid aristocratic background as the son of a successful and wealthy businessman.
He said Ekiti has from time immemorial enjoyed the comparative advantage in agriculture but lost out due to a lack of focus in the sector, especially with the youth losing interest in the vocation, but he predicted that this innovation will redirect the psyches of the Nigerian youth to the path of sanity.
The monarch said: “Dr. Tunji Olowolafe, the EKSU Chancellor, happens to be a friend to my brother, Dr. Yemi Olatunde, since their days at The Medical College, University of Lagos. Since that time, he has been known to me as someone who is futuristic and patriotic about anything Ekiti.
“With our current situation in Nigeria and with Ekiti being highly peculiar as having one of the highest graduate unemployment rates, we don’t need to be told that the only viable option to disentangle ourselves from the shambolic and burdensome unemployment rate is huge investment in agriculture.
“I am highly elated with this pronouncement. With it, many of our graduates will be self-employed rather than turning into job seekers. The dream of Ekiti becoming the food basket of the nation will be realised, and the real essence of learning at the tertiary level will be realised.
“What Dr. Olowolafe did was nothing but a rare display of patriotism, compassion, and love for the state and nation at large. One can imagine what a whopping sum of one billion naira would do to the lives of youth if they took to farming.
“Poverty and poverty are gradually taking over the land. Many of those engaging in thuggery, internet fraud, kidnapping, and other nefarious acts are youth. This may be largely due to a lack of engagement. But this initiative will offer a lifeline, and Ekiti will be better for it,” he said.
In the same vein, the monarch commended Dr Olowolafe for promising to endow another fund to help over 30 academics earn higher certificates in critical specialisations and strategic areas that can strengthen the economy through research and innovation.
Onimesi saluted Governor Oyebanji for making the right choice with Dr Olowolafe’s appointment and investiture as EKSU Chancellor, saying this signposted that the governor didn’t pander to the whimsical dictates of politics.
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