Renowned poet and scholar, Prof. Niyi Osundare, has lauded the physical and infrastructural transformation going on in Ekiti State under the leadership of Governor Kayode Fayemi and urging the administration to ensure that the progress is sustained.
Osundare who delivered a keynote address at the Opening Ceremony of the first Ikogosi Graduate Summer School (IGSS), holding at the Ikogosi Warm Spring Resort, Ikogosi-Ekiti, also described Fayemi as the “author of new book of change in Ekiti”.
Osundare who is among renowned scholar that are set to spend the next two weeks teaching graduate students at the IGSS, described the Ikogosi Warm Spring Resort, the flagship of the Fayemi administraton’s tourism agenda, as a “wondrous immeasurable delight”.
The Professor of Literature who said he last visited Ikogosi in 1993 when it was in a derelict state, recalled that the site was then an abode of dragon-like reptiles adding that he was surprised by facilities installed.
The Ikogosi Graduate Summer School, is a brainchild of Fayemi to attract eminent scholars from various parts of the world to share knowledge and provide mentoring for postgraduate students of Ekiti origin.The programme was also aimed at reversing the brain drain phenomenon and ensure scholarly reinvigoration of the Nigerian graduate system.
Osundare particularly praised the Ekiti governor for transforming Ikogosi from a jungle to a world-class tourist centre saying the project which is already attracting tourists from all over the globe was made possible by strong and determination to succeed.
“When I arrived here, I did not know that I am here. The last time I found myself here was a week before the June 12, 1993 election when my car was stuck in the mud but now Ikogosi is beckoning to the world”, he said.
The University of New Orleans professor expressed satisfaction that Ekiti now has one of the best road network in the federation which was made possible by Fayemi’s road construction efforts.
He noted that the Urban Renewal policy of the Fayemi administration has changed the face of Ado-Ekiti and other communities in the state.
Osundare urged Fayemi to ensure that all the projects carried out are maintained and not allowed to rot away.
The don noted that the distribution of laptops to students and teachers of public schools in Ekiti shows a sign of an administration that is serious with the revolution of education sector in a digitalized world.
With programmed like the Ikogosi Graduate Summer School, Osundare expressed optimism that Ekiti’s image is being boosted and redeemed from a state afflicted by violence, politically-motivated killings, electoral fraud, poor leadership, moral debasement and other vices.
Fayemi in his remarks said the IGSS was put in place in line with his administration’s resolve to always blaze the trail in education sector and make Ekiti a marketplace of ideas and centre of knowledge in the country.
The governor explained that he realized that it would not be possible to relocate the best scholars to Ekiti in one fell swoop from their overseas base hence the need to develop a programme in which students studying for their master’s and doctorate programmes are brought under the tutelage of the best brains from various parts of the world.
“The conception was against the background of eight-point agenda which gives a prominent place to education and reverse the incidence of mass emigration of the best academics to greener pastures.
“The IGSS was proposed as a platform through which they can mobilize their expertise and exposure for postgraduate students and to create and nurture relationship with scholars abroad”, Fayemi explained.
The governor expressed hope that the tranquillity and ambience provided by the Ikogosi Warm Spring Resort would augur well for the two-week academic activities at the tourism facility.
The two directors of the IGSS programme, Dr Wale Adebamwi (of University of California at Davis) and Dr Ebenezer Obadare (of Kansas University), also shed lights on the focus of the summer school, which is considered the first of its kind in the country.
The opening ceremony was witnessed by the Deputy Governor, Prof. Modupe Adelabu; Fayemi’s wife, Bisi; Vice Chairman, Senate Committee on Education, Senator Olusola Adeyeye, Senator Babafemi Ojudu, who represents Ekiti Central in the upper legislative chamber, Secretary to the state Government, Alhaji Ganiyu Owolabi and the Chief of Staff, Mr Yemi Adaramodu. Also in attendance were the Commissioners for Education, Mr kehinde Ojo, Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Chief Ronke Okusanya and the Special Adviser on MDG, Mrs Bunmi Dipo –Salami among others.
Last modified: June 19, 2013