Prestigious School.
The 30th executive president of the Union, Comrade Alao Idris Observation was a unique sensation yesterday as he not only adressed the general audience with laudable plans and aspiration of his Administration but also impressed with intelligents answers to the questions that were put acrossed to him.
It was also hinted that Unilorites who will be staying in the School dormitories will be enjoying Internet services (wifi). Students are also enjoined to patiently wait for the ongoing portal upgrade, as the school is on toes to get all in place.
The Senate president Comrade Mashood abdulsalam Oriire while delivering his speech, expressed the Senate council’s dissatisfaction over the about 4k plus 100 Level students who could not make it to the 200 level as a result of failure in academics. He hinted that the SRC is working in earnest to stem the tides as we resume this session.
The Senate also unveiled their new maze officially.
The Sub dean Students affairs, Dr A. Yusuf, Media icon; Abdulgafar Arikeuyo and other notable dignitaries were in attendance.
You can read the full Text of the president’s Address Below;
THE TEXT OF THE MAIDEN EDITION OF PRESS CONFERENCE OF THE UNIVERISTY OF ILORIN STUDENTS’ UNION HELD ON 15TH OCTOBER, 2015 AT THE AUDITORIUM BASEMENT
Protocols…
I welcome you all to the maiden edition of the Press conference of the University of Ilorin Students’ Union at a very historic time that the University is celebrating her forty years of existence and the Union her thirty years of existence. If I’m to a recall a similar event in the university, then I will be talking about the silver jubilee of the university in the year 2000.
Also, the theme of this conference tagged; “The State of the Union” is not without an historic account. The President of the United States has the constitutional mandate to address the joint session of the US Congress once in every year. That address is popularly tagged the state of the union, which details the account of stewardship the incumbent president in the last one year. Again, my leadership in the Students’ union is equally very historic as I remain the only president to have contested twice for the seat of the president since the return of Student unionism in 2007 after its proscription in 2004.
Taking clue from the US experience with a slight modification, our union intends to address the Press on the following issues on a day as historic as the day of resumption. The issues are;
The Historic 40th Anniversary/ 31st convocation of the University
The condition of the Youth in the country
Programmes and Plans of the Union for 2015/2016 Academic session
The Achievements and challenges faced by the union since assumption of office
The Historic 40th Anniversary/ 31st Convocation of the University
A lot of efforts had been put in place to celebrate these two ceremonies which start officially tomorrow (Friday 16th October), with a special Jumat service as contained in the publication made available by the university. However, the publicity aspect is commencing today with this Press conference and a road show coming up immediately after this programme. The dress appearance and preparedness of our very enthusiastic students will attest to this. All other programmes are contained in the handbill which will be distributed in the meantime.
The condition of the Youth/student in the country
Youth in the country are people aged 18-35 years. The students especially those of us in the Tertiary institution constitute a larger percentage of the youth population. Hence, the interchange of the youth and student especially within the education and youth sectors. It is no longer news that more than 50% of this population are unemployed – a situation recently described as an artificial creation of the few rich people in government to detriment of the massive poor out of government.
Even with the renewal of hope and aspiration in the “change regime” of President Buhari, there is still a lot to do to have the youth engaged and make us live a fulfilled and sustainable life. I understand there are countless paper works in the various ministerial archives of Federal and state governments. Ditto for the Local government authorities and the ever—increasing Non-Governmental organization to engaged the youth through Empowerment initiatives in their diverse forms with end result culminating into “the 3E solutions” of Employment, Entrepreneurship and Entitlements. I shall not delve into its elaboration for want of time and space. However, it suffices to say that the youth can best advocate for themselves by themselves. This assertion largely accords with the democratic cliché of the government of the people by the people and for the people. The people in this context are the youth. Although, same may apply to other groups like the women and persons with disabilities are often marginalized by the government.
It is suggested that the PMB-APC led government must as a matter of priority consider the political representation of the youth. Unfortunately, many of those who agitate for or represent our interest are either out the youth age range or lack the understanding of the legal framework that will capture the youth. In an article titled; “Towards Understanding Youth Representation In Nigeria Politics” which was written at the heat of the electioneering of the last General elections to re-shape the argument of having a youthful president, I had x-rayed the challenges facing the youth and the best way to ensure our representation.
The challenges are; the constraints in the legal framework for youth representation in the governments and political parties, socio-economic and educational factors. It is sad to note that the 898 page report of the ‘glorified’ 2014 National conference only succeeded to note the marginalization of the youth but failed to make attempts at proposing the enabling electoral system that will assist the realization of their political representation – a clear indication of insufficient understanding of the legal framework for youth representation.
I equally recommended, through the experience from other climes, political party restructuring, age reduction in the legal framework constraints and electoral quota for youth through Proportional representation (PR) system. The PR system (an electoral system) operates through the party list generated by the political parties. Each political party is to nominate members (youth) to the National or regional assemblies according to the percentage of seats it has in the legislative house and hence the term, proportional representation. South-Africa, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda are examples of countries that had incorporated the PR system in their constitutions. These countries have a lesser population and by necessary implication a lesser youth population compared to Nigeria, which is more than four times larger than Kenya and three times than South Africa. The PR system is therefore suggested for youth representation in Nigerian politics.
Programmes and Plans of the Union for 2015/2016 Academic session
The Aremu Malik-led administration is popular with the saying; “We have done our best, but there is still so much more left to be done” (Pg 6, Students’ Union Bulletin, June 2013 Edition). This statement raises the issues of continuity in the government given that permanence is one of the characteristics of government. It noteworthy that two distinctive administrations of the Students’ union had come and gone after the Aremu-led regime and yet, our distinguished members are still desirous for more from us and we are duty bound to cater for as many interests as possible.
The efforts of this current administration led by the #TeamPositiveChange had since assumption of office, worked tirelessly on having a solid and effective plan that will enhance staging successful programmes in this new session. The following under-listed are the recommended programmes of the union which was presented to the Vice-chancellor on Monday 31st August, 2015. For the first semester we have the following;
Official Press Conference
Senate Council Orientation Programme
Student Leadership Conference
1st UNILORIN Breast and Cervical Cancer Disease Campaign
The Global Entrepreneurship Week 2015
Unilorin Idol
Drug-Free Sensitization Programme
Freshers Oratory Contest and Spelling Bee Competition
3-in-1 Workshop (on Writing, Public Speaking & Social Media Training)
Essay Contest
Female 5-Adide Football competition
‘About My University’ Challenge (to be featured as part of the Freshers’ Orientation Programme)
Freshers’ Party (featuring Artiste Night)
For the Second semester, we have the following;
The Female Gender Programme (which will focus on women in the midst of Parenting and Career pursuit)
Youth Leadership Summit (Pan-African edition)/Journal Launching and Award conferment
Miss Unilorin Beauty Pageant
Entrepreneurial development Seminar
Road safety Awareness for Campus road Users
Male 5-Aside Football Championship
Student’ Union Week
Additional Sports packages (Aerobic exercise for students in the halls of reisdence, Football Freestyle Joggling training and sports training for pupils of Unilorin Primary school)
Final year week
Luncheon/Award Ceremony
The Achievements and challenges faced by the union
In just four months, we have been able to make some marks in the annals of our union. This forum can’t accommodate the list. However, to mention a few;
Human Capacity Development
In July, I led a delegation of members of the union from among the Central Executive and Senate Councils as well as the congressmen to the National Youth Reform Conference. At the conference, I participated as a member of the communique drafting committee that made recommendations to the APC-led government. The President of the Senate Council, Senator Mashood Abdulsalam Orire took the role of the Senate leader during the Parliamentary session. In the same July, the Protocol officer of the Union, Comrade M.B Almubajjal and my Personal assistant Comrade Babaita Habeebullah attended the NASE Retreat at Kaduna State University. NASE is the Network for Africa Student Entrepreneurs.
In a keenly contested Essay contest organized by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), a law student and a senator representing faculty of law at the Senate Council emerged second prize winner. Also, four students of the university sustained the legacy their predecessors had laid at the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria (CIPMN) Annual Essay competition. The four students are; Deji Atoyebi (Pol. Sci 200L), Abdul Ganiy Shehu (Maths 400L), Habeebullahi Basorun (English 400L) and Emmanuel Okedeji (Pol Sci 200L). Eventually, Deji clinched the second prize. It is gratifying that Unilorin made four out of the seven students from different institutions invited for the essay defense.
Still more, three former members of our great union made us proud through dint of hard work. These three members had distinguished themselves at the academic front as well as in co-curricular activities by earning a first class grades at the end of their studies in the university. They are; Muhammed Abdullahi (Law), Adam Ndakudu (Law), Abdulkareem Raodat (Life science). Abdullahi worked as a pioneer member of the editorial board that saw the publication of the first edition of “The Erudite Journal” – the Journal of Leadership and development. Ndakudu was the immediate past Chief Justice of the Union and Raodat was the first female Deputy President of the Senate council.
As if the above aren’t enough, the energetic immediate past Vice President of the Students’ union, Comrade Anifowoshe Titilope (aka LegalEagle) founded a Non-Governmental Organization known as “Eagle’s Foundation for Humanity”. Titi’s flair for serving humanity is unmatched. Like Mahatma Ghandi, She lost her life in the service of others to find herself. We wish them all the best in the years to come.
On Welfare
Few weeks into assuming office, I led members of the CEC to inspect the condion of the facilities in the halls of residence. The need for renovation was communicated to the Student Affairs Unit which was further communicated to the Hostel manager. The result is the ongoing renovation. As at the time of writing this release, the renovation is near completion. There are indications that the two most important utilities of power and water will improve creditably well this session. The operators of cabs and taxi promised they will increase the transport capacity. The Keke-napep operators have also shown commitment for diligent service this session and Simplimove transport had created a route maps and bus schedule that covers new areas. Under this new arrangement, students of the faculties of Agriculture, Management Sciences, Agriculture, Social Sciences, Life sciences, Communication and Information Sciences, Physical sciences and Pharmaceutical sciences will be covered. We are still holding talks to ensure students of Veterinary medicine are covered. We hope to resolve soon.
Students’ Union Volunteer Group
The Students’ Union Volunteer Group is a flagship programme initiated by the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academics), Prof. N.Y.S Ijaiya to serve as a platform for individuals who are dedicated the cause of volunteerism. Efforts are underway to identify people who have flair for participation in community service without being motivated by pecuniary benefits. Interested students can also subscribe.
Online Awareness
As part of our resolution to create different communication channels that will ensure optimal work performance, we worked so hard on engaging our distinguished members through our various social media platforms mostly on the Facebook and Twitter. The feedbacks we got are encouraging as our members witnessed an unprecedented system of governance. They are fully updated about programmes and plans of the Union. However, to our consternation, some people are yet to desist from the use of vulgar language on these platforms. We urge each and every one of us to please maintain decorum and act with civility while at the same time imbibing cyber ethics whenever we engage the student leaders. Remember, you elected us to serve YOU.
The Challenges
As with every new administrations or governments, there are inherited problems and issues. We tried as much to resolve them at the earliest opportunity. However, permit me to mention the deplorable condition of the SU wagon. After its assessment, the SU leadership decided to sacrifice our convenience and wait till resumption before any further repair is carried out. This is to avoid any kind of moral question that may arise should the wagon be put in continuous usage.
CONCLUDING REMARK
I on behalf of the leadership of the Students’ union appreciate you all for taking your time to attend this conference – being not only the first of its kind but also the first programme of this administration. We implore you all to continue with your unflinching support and your abiding faith in our leadership. To the members of the fourth estate of the realm, I equally urge you to continuously project the image of our union and that of the university with all sense of objectivity. For indeed! You are the WATCHDOG who holds every government ACCOUNTABLE. To everyone else, I say Exetulla Abundanti. Thanks.
All for the love of Aloha!
Aloha Maori Aroha (Peace, Love and Affection)!!
Comrade Idris Alao (Observation)
The 30th Executive President, Students’ Union
University of Ilorin, Ilorin.
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