The Reward for Good is Good: Being a Speech Delivered by The Pro-Chancellor of Osun State University, YUSUF ALI, SAN FCIArb
SPEECH BY THE PRO-CHANCELLOR OF OSUN STATE UNIVERSITY, YUSUF ALI, SAN FCIArb AT THE 2ND TUNDE PONLE ANNUAL LECTURE AT THE OLAGUNSOYE OYINLOLA AUDITORIUM, OSUN STATE UNIVERSITY OSOGBO, ON TUESDAY, 22ND December, 2020
THE REWARD FOR GOOD IS GOOD
It gives me
immeasurable pleasure to welcome you all to this fast growing Citadel of
Learning for the 2nd Prince Tunde Ponle Annual Lecture. I do this on
behalf of the Management, Staff, Students and Council
of this University.
I welcome in
a very special way the Assistant Vice-Chancellor of the University of West
England, Bristol in the United Kingdom Professor
Lukmon Oyedele who will deliver this 2nd Tunde Ponle lecture
with the title “Internationalization of
Higher Education in Nigeria: A call for change of Attitude and strategies”.
In the same
vein, I welcome the object of this Lecture, Prince Engineer Michael Ayantunde Ponle OON, OFR and his radiant
ever young wife Her Excellency, Otunba Titi-Laoye Ponle to this epochal event.
This event
is coming a few days to the 81st Birthday of a redoubtable, reliable,
committed,
focused,
goal
getting, astute businessman, a lover of progress and an
uncommon philanthropist, committed community leader and a
lover of Osun State; Engr. Tunde Ponle.
On behalf of
the Council,
Management,
Staff
and Students
of
the University, I wish you more years of impactful service in good
health and abundance of wherewithal.
Why Tunde
Ponle Annual Lecture? The saying is axiomatic that the reward for good is good.
Engr; Ponle bequeathed his sprawling country home to this University for the
use of our College of Health Sciences for life.
The best way
to repay this kindness is to institute this Annual Lecture to appreciate this
generosity, while the giver is still with us on mother earth.
The
University is expectant of the helping hands of men and women of goodwill for
the annual sustenance of this Annual Lecture.
In an
address that deals with the spirit of giving, this University cannot forget the
kindness of our Chancellor and her family Modupe
and Dr. Folorunso Alakija for
their unflinching support to this University. How can we forget the N250million
Naira they donated towards the
completion of the access road to this University, the Foloruso Alakija
Boulevard. The ongoing multi-billion naira state of the art 250 bed Teaching
Hospital.
How can we
forget the Late Mrs. Frederica Abimbola
Omololu-Mulele a Lawyer, Philanthropist and Educationist
who bequeathed N58million endowment in her will to the University’s Department
of Accounting. These are some of the outstanding givers to our University.
I use this
special yuletide occasion to call on other public spirited and endowed citizens, to come and sow seed of progress in
our University, by way of endowment, gifts, and donations to help alleviate the
challenges of development in the University. We assure you that any such
intervention will be prudently and scrupulously utilized in very transparent
manner. This University will not forget you and your act of generosity.
I seize this
occasion to salute our Member of Staff who inspite of all
odds, are making the University to continue in its primary duty of teaching and
research.
It is
heartwarming to let you know that before the COVID 19 and End SARS crises crippled
our country, this University had embarked on digitization of teaching and
learning and this vision has assisted us to continue with academic work,
culminating in the successful completion of the 2019/2020 academic session.
In
concluding this short piece, let me call on all the stakeholders in our
Tertiary education sector to have a new look at our tertiary education in the
country. One of the key indicators of world class University education is
regular, uninterrupted and on time Academic calendar. We cannot expect new
results, when we use the same old system to deal with new challenges. We must
have a serious look and rethink about the use of strike as a bargaining tool in
our tertiary institutions.
I wish you
all a Merry Christmas and New Prosperous 2021 in advance.
God bless you all.
God bless UNIOSUN
God bless Osun State
God bless Nigeria