The Vice-Chancellor of Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Prof Eyitope Ogunbodede, has said the first renal transplantation to be undertaken by a team of indigenous surgeons in any public institution in the country and also the separation of Siamese twins ever carried out in the country were done by the university.
He said both medical feats among several others were carried out and repeatedly at the university’s teaching hospital in Ile-Ife.
Prof Ogunbodede made this known on Monday in Lagos at a news conference to announce the commencement of activities of the university’s 60th anniversary that would start on Sunday, June 6, and end with convocation ceremonies in December.
He was at the conference with the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of Governing Council of the university, Sir Owele Oscar Udoji; Chairman, OAU 60th Anniversary Committee, Prof. Charles Ukeje; Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Administration), OAU, Prof. Chris Ajila; Pro-Chancellor, Summit University, Alhaji Rafiu Adisa Ebiti; National President, OAU Alumni, Mr Wale Olaleye; the Nollywood actor and alumnus, Mr Yemi Solade and Actress Foluke Daramola-Salako, also an alumnus; President, UNIFEMGA (Home and Diaspora), Alhaji Abdulfattah Olanlege and Rev. Bola Oyeledun, among others.
Speaking further, the vice-chancellor, who said OAU which started with just 224 students and 64 academic members of staff and 15 senior administrative and technical staff in June 1961 and now has more than 25,000 students and 4,000 members of staff as of today has achieved great development not only in academic programmes but also in research, infrastructure and human resources.
He said the university has produced so many well-to-do individuals across fields of human endeavours and that all the 93 academic programmes currently being run are accredited by the National Universities Commission (NUC).
He said OAU does not produce just any graduate but all-rounded graduates with good character that would be able to stand tall in their chosen fields with their peers anywhere across the globe.
He said the motive of the founding fathers of the university including the sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, the then Premier of the Western Region of Nigeria whose name the university was later changed to in 1987 to honour him was to ensure OAU would not be a mere colonial ivory tower, but rather a true African university both in form and in substance.
Prof Ogunbodede, who commended what he called the strong contributions of alumni at both association and individual levels to the continued progress being experienced over the years by the university, said the vision of the founding fathers would continue to guide the university in its activities.
He said, at the moment, the university is almost at the stage of running an independent power plant to supply the university with steady electricity and also to enjoy constant water supply at both students’ hostels, staff quarters and other areas of the university community.
Also speaking, the Pro-Chancellor of the university, Sir Owele Oscar Udoji, said it would be difficult for any university anywhere in the world particularly in Nigeria where public universities are faced with a paucity of funds to develop meaningfully without the support of the alumni.
According to him, alumni are the engine room of any university.
He, however, called on both old and recent alumni of the university across the world to support the university the more so as to further move it forward appreciably.
He promised that his administration would add meaningful value to the progress of the university.
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