Governor Ajimobi, others bag honorary doctorate

GBENRO ADESINA/IBADAN

The Governor of Oyo State, Abiola Ajimobi has attributed the current multi-faceted crises bedeviling the country to the moral decadence which it had experienced for past decades.

He spoke today at the second convocation ceremonies of Al-Hikmah University, Ilorin during which he and six other eminent personalities were conferred with honourary doctorate degrees. Other awardees were the Inspector-General of Police, Alhaji M. D. Abubakar, Comptroller-General of Customs, Alhaji Abdullahi Dikko Inde, Governors of Kwara, Sokoto and Zamfara as well as a traditional ruler, Alhaji Ahmed Babalola, Arepo III, the Elese of Igbajaland.

The governor, who noted that Nigeria was going through a trying time owing to decades of moral decadence, said that the country had failed in its duty to produce children and youths who put God first in whatever they did.

“This is the foundation for the multi-faceted crises that have bedeviled the nation. As our elders say, it is a child that we fail to educate who destroys the heritage of his parents. This is why crimes have become synonymous with our society. As our youths grow only in the knowledge of the world and not in the knowledge of God, so are the lapses showing in the breakdown in the fabrics of our society,” he said.

Governor Ajimobi, however, stated that it was a great relief that the founding fathers of Al-Hiqmah University had identified the urgent need to emphasise moral education as a necessity and an integral part of the country’s educational system adding, “With this vision and the development of a concurrent curriculum that places emphasis on character and knowledge, the founding fathers have put in place the building blocks for the peace and development of our society”.

As a politician and public official, he said that his guiding principle is that the greatest form of worship is service to mankind stressing,”For me, politics is a call to service. There is no human endeavour that offers man a greater platform to serve the greatest number of men than politics. As philanthropists, we may reach many minds and rescue thousands from poverty and misery. In the professions as Law, Medicine, Journalism, Teaching, Unionism and so on, we can reach thousands and perhaps millions of people through our excellent services. However, it is only through the platform of politics that we can reach the greatest number of people through policies and action. It is therefore understandable when it is said that the fear of Allah is the beginning of wisdom and for me, it is the beginning of wisdom in politics and in government as well”.

While thanking the authorities of the institution for the award, he said that it was in appreciation of his humble contributions to the development of Oyo State in the last 16 months that he had assumed office noting, “In the last 16 months, we have tried to worship Allah through our service to the good people of Oyo State. It has pleased God to restore peace and tranquility in Oyo State and it has dropped the toga of brigandage which it acquired over the years, to become one of the most peaceful states in Nigeria”.

He saluted the vision of the founding fathers of the institution as well as their dedication and lives of sacrifice which had transformed to this promising university.

“As a government that leverages on best practices wherever they are found, we are going to take advantage of this vision of the founding fathers of Al-Hiqmah University by emphasizing character in the curriculum of our newly-established Technical University in Ibadan” he assured.

Although Governor Ajimobi said that he had declined previous offers of honorary doctorate degrees from many universities, he accepted that of Al-Hikmah because of the uniqueness of the institution and how its emphasis on morality had been meeting the major needs of the society.