IBILE Day Celebration: LASU VC Makes Case For Lagosians, Shuns Mediocrity

By LOVETH AZODO, Lagos

The Vice Chancellor, Lagos State University (LASU) Prof. Olanrewaju Fagbohun SAN has stated that the IBILE Day is not for the promotion of conflicts amongst indigenes and non-indegenes of Lagos state rather to ensure that indigenes are given a pride of place in what is theirs.

Fagbohun stated this Today at the maiden edition of the IBILE Day Celebration held at the Lagos State University (LASU) with theme L”For Lagos: Past, Present and Future.”

In his speech, Fagbohun who was recently named the best VC of the varsity as a result of the peace and developments he successfully achieved four years in office explained that the stakeholders do not advocate that some people should go rather everyone must come together and work as one in LASU.

He said “Management must remain responsible, Unions must remain responsible if this university must sustain its development, Use your energy to sustain this University. Stand together as one.

“Today, this initiative is to protect the peace that we have. To do this, we need everybody on board.”

“It takes time to build an institution; it takes a day to destroy it. We must not allow what we have achieved to be destroyed. We must remain together,” he urged.

Also speaking, the president of Eko club and chairman of the event, Dr. Ade Dosunmu stated that the IBILE forum is not a platform to promote mediocrity rather to promote the course of Lagosians.

“Our People must strive to be the best and we must make sure that the best of us will be the ones to take leadership positions, we must let people know that as Lagosians, we are decent people, we are well-read and we are responsible,” he said.

On the VC’s successor, he said “We thank God for the giant strides that we have recorded through the Vice Chancellor. But one day, he must leave. He has laid a good foundation. We must get involved in who succeeds him and ensure that while he is still here, we give him the needed support.”

Dosunmu i suggested that Lagosians are allowed to man positions that are critical in all institutions in Nigeria.

However, the keynote speaker, Prof. Imran Oluwole Smith noted that merit must be considered while placing indigenes in leadership positions to avoid promoting Mediocrity.

Dr. Hakeem Ajongbadi, the first discussant who spoke on ‘Sustainability of the Giant Strides In LASU’ stated that it is only a lazy lagosian that will be so interested in flexing muscles “if we therefore hide under the umbrella of indigene without merit then we are not helping the system,” he said.

Ajongbadi applauded the VC for his achievements in the institution, he noted that his four years in office was like 40 years.

He said “let’s not miss good people before we appreciate them.”

The IBILE day celebration is an initiative of all the five divisions of Lagos State namely; Ikeja, Badagry, Ikorodu, Lagos and Epe.