To start with, before pacing back and forth and joggling about, I want to heartily congratulate Omoboriowo Oluwadamilola Isaac popularly known as Dr. Bush and other members of the Central Executive Council of the Students’ Union for their inauguration as the Students’ Union Executives for the 2023/2024 Academic Session. Indeed, Great Ife Students are buzzing for it and are expecting what the Dr. Bush-led administration will bring on board.
However, as a piece of advice, I want to harp on the Yoruba adage which says ‘Oba tó jẹ ti ìlú dáa, orúkọ rẹ̀ yóò wà nínú ìwé ìtàn, èyí to jẹ tí ìlú polukurumusu, ọrúkọ rè yóò wà nínú ìwé ìtàn’, this proverb when directly translated into English means, ‘A king whose reign ushers in prosperity, peace and progress, his name will forever be immortalized and the one whose reign brings about chaos, disorderliness and impoverishment, his name will also be remembered for all the wrong reasons.’
Just as we have it in the Bible, in the Chronicles of Kings who reigned in Israel, where some ruled judiciously and compassionately and therefore have their names sung as heroes till today. However, some others. with their despotic and draconian policy, ruled ferociously and wickedly and, as such, till today, still being referenced as wicked rulers and consequently being blacklisted in the record book.
I will, on this note, refer to two kings with different postures and characters: one with a despotic mindset and as such render the throne of David twain and the other with good counsel, ruled with compassion and earn fame. In 1 King 12 the story of King Rehoboam denotes the despotic and unheeding ruler who, out of wrong counsel, deviated from his father’s standard and harshly ruled the Israelites.
In 1 King chapter 15, the story of King Asa illustrated a listening king who had people at heart and was keen on listening to their plights. Asa, according to records, removed all the idols in Israel and restored the Worship of God that had once been abandoned by the Israelites. The intent of making a reference to this is to emphasize the importance of heeding counsels and working in the light of people’s needs and aspirations.
Just as the famous quote from Lord Acton says ‘Power tends to corrupt, absolute power corrupts absolutely.’
So that Dr. Bush will not be consumed and intoxicated by power as a drunkard who is lost in the world of hallucination, I write to offer him a piece of shekel – this piece is as golden and important as the last piece offered by the poor widow who gave her all. I know this piece is small and neither does it have that significant worth as expected. However, just as mentioned, this piece is precious and weightier than the meadow’s might. Yoruba elders will say ‘ààbọ̀ ọ̀rọ̀ là ń sọ fún Ọmọlúàbí, tó bá dénú ẹ́ á di odindi’ , which means, ‘A word is enough for the wise.’
My piece of shekel, again, to Dr. Bush, is to ring in his ears that the love of the Great Ife Students which propelled him to vie for the mandate should consistently spur him to implement pro-student policies that will make campus life easy and comfortable for all. While the Expectations of the students are high, as they look up to the new administration, they also anticipate the new wave of development that the Dr Bush-led administration will usher in.
While we pray that you succeed in office, you have to know that good leadership does not come on a silver platter. It takes great determination and conscious effort to effect good policies. Just as Plato says in his dialogue “Meno” in an interlocution between Socrates and some Greek sages, he says and I quote, ‘For any society to grow, the leadership structure must, by mean of determination and necessity, ensure that it doesn’t leave anything to nature or chance to determine because by leaving affairs in the hand of nature/chance, no progress can be made.’
For you to thrive as a leader and effect progressive policies, you must be determined, consciously and painstakingly, to work in the interest of the Great Ife Students community. Lacklustre, lackadaisical or indifference posture should not in any way be accommodated by you at all and neither give place to mediocrity.
My dearest Illuminating Change Makers; now is the time to study, assess and reassess your predecessors. Now is the time to surf through the WebPages of history to find out their errors and bugs. Now is the exact time to start scrambling through the footpaths they walked to see the little pebbles responsible for their falls, downfalls, flaws, and inadequacies. I know you would not want to be like Rehoboam who rejected the counsel of the elders but rather chose to toll the line of the stupid counsel given by his friends. I want to believe that in your circle of affiliates you don’t have gullible and senseless folks who will misdirect your part and make your administration fail.
Remember, as the proverb quoted above says, ‘Ọba to jẹ tí ìlú dára, orukọ rẹ kọni parẹ nínú ìwé ìtàn.’ Your circle of advisor and team will determine how well or how worse your administration will be. So, I will advise you to choose wisely. Thus, I dare you to study the past and critically look keenly at what stumbled your predecessors so that the slippery slope will not affect you too.
As you are coming on board, the Great Ife Students are eagerly anticipating how you will clip the wings of the esurient and monopolistic business ventures, most especially town-gboro and okada riders on campus who hike fare prices exorbitantly to suit their interest. Dear change makers, we are curious to witness how you will tenaciously wage a war against their monopolistic power and bring about an alternative to ease the transport tension that has long been gripping the heart of every Great Ife Student. Great Ife Students have pan their eyes on you observing whether you will be lax and incapacitated as the outgone administration who were held excommunicado by the imperious force of town-gboro and okada riders or will you change the narration and bring about an alternative that will soothing the tension of fare prices? All eyes are on you.
It’s either you make a choice to sustain that smile you’ve been putting on before election to your very last day in office. Or you choose to return it back to where you’ve borrowed it – that’s ACCESSIBILITY versus REMOTENESS. You also have to choose between SUSTAINABILITY and IMPRACTICALITY. Learn to think in advance for your successors. Thinking here will not be sufficient without adequate documentation of events and best practices alongside a sustainable system of administration. Things are still like this because of your predecessors’ short-sightedness.
Now is the time to reflect your ingenuity in your decisions. You must know that indecision at this point is a decision; the decision to be non-functional or ignoring the right thing. Just as you’re known to be a seasoned teacher – someone whose vast experience has registered a profound sense of intelligence, integrity and purpose, every of your decisions should be guided by the sincerity to effect propelling programs that will be sheer to all.
As well, now is the time to choose between responsibility and irresponsibility. Responsibility, in this aspect, is accepting your failures when it is being pointed at – it is a genuine acceptance of your shortcomings. Responsibility, on the other hand, is being accountable for your actions or inactions and taking charge of your duties squarely. It is the answerability for the question raised by your conducts. It is being responsible and accountable for every Kobo put in your care. Responsibility, if you don’t know, is muffed in the face of encomiums; it’s a wage in the face of blame, guilt and utter condemnation. It will be needless to start schooling you on what the opposite of ‘responsibility’ is because I believe you’re experienced enough to see the handwriting everywhere.
At this juncture, in order not to bore you further with my exposition, I hope you are aware that a great task is laid before you and you have a great hurdle to cross. As you know, OAU is a big community with larger than life issues and I assume you know the multi-faceted problems that might actually hinder your good purpose – if you have one anyway! I am sure you are prepared mentally and physically to withstand all of them and thrash them all out?
I want to ring it in your heart again that you are not just representing yourself and neither are you representing the interest of the few, you are here representing all students of Obafemi Awolowo University and either consciously or unconsciously, you’re now representing all faculties, departments, agencies, groups and all. You are representing our interest and values and you want to ensure that our rights don’t elude us at all.
My piece of shekel, again, is offered to arouse your humane disposition in being a listening leader with a heart of gold. Your priority should be to forge an active student environment where inclusivity, proactive Union policy and apt response to pivotal matters will be of utmost importance.
I know, as earlier stated, that the office comes handy with its loads of problem just as governmental position in Nigeria, where leaders inherited myriads of problems. However, even though coming to perfect what has long been crooked and oblong straight and perfect may seem like chasing a shadow, thus, making efforts to recreate, reshape and create a pathway will go a long way because it will give your successors a pattern to thread. Remember, WORKS ARE NOT MEANT TO BE CELEBRATED, THEY ARE MEANT TO BE DONE! Don’t stay too long celebrating a temporal exploit, rather, be future-oriented and work assiduously towards making a landmark such that your name will be sung for a lifetime. I know for a certainty that you will be faced with lots of obstacles and obstructions, in fact, you are likely to be discouraged from doing the needful. But one thing that should always fuel your passion is your love and compassion for Great Ife Students which influenced your decision in the first instance.
The student community is not asking you to overturn everything overnight and neither does the student community expect you to be our miracle working-Tinubu who promises to overturn things overnight, all the student community ask is a determined approach to step-by-step implementation of good policies.
Notwithstanding, my piece of shekel is not an all-purpose recipe nor is it aimed at giving you all the ingredients for running a successful administration, rather, it is just meant to prepare you ahead and offer you some piece of advice, painstakingly, for the task ahead. As way of way of flashing out my care and love for you, I deem it right to efficaciously bring to your consciousness some of those things that might beset your administration. On this wise, I appeal to you to heed the wonderful counsel of mine and those, who, in light of my view, advice you to do the needful.
Endeavour to always checkmate and gauge the opinions of the public to see how well your administration fares with the people. A leader, I reiterate, is the one who is open to receiving instructions and welcomes even the opposition’s view in running a successful tenure. I will be here rooting for you if your administration effect pro-student policies and I will also be here as a whistle blower to announce any shoddy policy your administration implemented. Just like Moses, admonishing the Israelites, placed before them death and life, cursing and blessing but urging them to choose life. I, as well, urge you to work in your best capacity to ensure the campus environment is beneficial to all and sundry. It is at your discretion to either absorb the advice offered or thrash it. As the Yorubas will say, ‘Eni a wí fún, ọba jẹ́ ó gbọ.’
Now, the question is, would you be that king that will be remembered forever for iron-clad impacts or would you, on the other hand, be remembered as a king whose reign is renowned for hedonistic lifestyle? The option is right before you, my dearest change maker.
Thus, I have come to the end of my beating about the bush. Therefore, that is my piece of Kobo for YOU!