The year 2025 has been an eventful one in different areas of the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU). It was a year of smiles and great memories, the kind that had people laughing in Oduduwa halls, dancing to the alumni’s melodious hits at the newly renovated Amphitheatre, laughing at jokes and dramas at Pit Theatre, taking pictures they will keep for years at Motion Ground, and bonding over little campus moments that will become lifelong stories.
In the midst of the everyday hustle and laughter, greatness still found ways to show itself through shared wins, proud milestones, and those random, funny moments that made Great Ife not just a school but a community, but then we also paused, with heavy hearts, to remember not to tell the story like everything was perfect. The year also had its darker days, painful reminders that bad things happen, and reminders of how fragile everything is, and that behind the noise of celebration, some hearts were crying in loss with heavy questions.
ACJOAU takes a moment to rewind the year and bring you some of the events that shaped OAU in 2025, both the highs that made us proud and the lows that reminded us to hold each other closer.
One of OAU’s academic wins in 2025 was securing a third-place finish (Bronze Medal) in the University Duel, a national annual Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM)-focused competition that tests undergraduates’ intellectual strength, innovation, and problem-solving skills. OAU was represented by Adesina Lekan, a 200-level student of Computer Science & Engineering, alongside Alli Abdulqayum and Ogungbayi Imran, both 100-level students of Electrical/Electronics Engineering. OAU impressed throughout the contest, and this result reinforced OAU’s image as a leading hub of academic brilliance in Nigeria.
The year 2025 was also recorded with multiple incidents of armed robbery in the off-campus residences, including but not limited to Moremi, Asherifa, Oke Ola, and Mayfair. These robbers carted away students’ gadgets, including mobile phones, laptops, money, cars, and other valuable belongings. Also, these robberies resulted in some of the victims sustaining injuries. The student union condemned the attacks, called on authorities for security, and also protested when the state governor, Ademola Adeleke, visited the Ooni of Ife. While none of these items were recovered or suspects linked to the robberies, the number of robberies has since then reduced.
In June 2025, the Federal Capital Territory Minister (FCT), Nyesom Wike, visited OAU to deliver the inaugural Distinguished Personality Lecture, titled “Nigeria of Our Dreams.” The lecture challenged Nigerians to rise above despair and actively forge a nation that mirrors its boundless potential; however, in a dramatic turn of events, two students of OAU, Oladepo Joshua and Kelechi Ejike, protested against the minister’s demolition of homes in Abuja and demanded that he compensate those who were affected, but in a surprising turn of events, the students were arrested, a development that the school management debunked but was later spotlighted after a report about their release came up on ACJOAU, FIJ and Sahara Reporters websites with photo evidence.
One of the most distressing events on the Great Ife campus in 2025 was the disappearance of Dorcas Oseghale, a Part 3 chemistry student, who went missing in early August after reportedly stepping out at night to get food around Maintenance and never returning. Her photo and missing alerts spread rapidly across WhatsApp and X, sparking fear and urgency across the student community as her phone went off, and no contact could be made.
Dorcas, her mother’s only child, has still not been found despite searches and repeated public appeals. As we rewind to 2025, our hearts and prayers remain with her and her family, holding on to hope that she will be seen and brought home safe.
On Wednesday, August 13, 2025, the Great Ife community was shattered by the loss of Ibitayo Ajibola, a dentistry student who took his own life in the early hours of the day after the release of unfavourable examination results, after having repeated Part 2 the previous year and faced the possibility of withdrawal. It was a loss that didn’t just bring sadness but also a kind of silence that sits heavily on the heart.
As this goes down as one of the saddest events on our campus in 2025, it also forces us to confront a painful truth: many students are fighting battles we may never see. Sometimes, the brightest smiles hide the deepest exhaustion. Sometimes, ‘I am fine’ is just a way of surviving one more day. These moments remind us that greatness must be redefined, not only as academic excellence but as compassion, support, and community. We must prioritise mental health, create safe spaces to speak, and truly be our brother’s keeper, checking in, listening, showing up, and refusing to let anyone feel alone in their struggle. We pray for Ajibola’s eternal rest, and we pray that his family and loved ones continue to find strength, comfort, and peace through this unimaginable loss.
One of the most dramatic political episodes on the OAU campus in 2025 was the impeachment and subsequent reinstatement of the Great Ife Students’ Union Central Executive Council (CEC) following allegations of financial misappropriation and misconduct. In late July, the Student Representative Council (SRC) announced the impeachment of several union executives, citing alleged diversion of Students’ Union Building (SUB) funds and breaches of parliamentary conduct. While most of the executives were reinstated after refunds were made, the President, General Secretary, and Assistant General Secretary were not reinstated.
The decision sparked intense controversy, with affected officers insisting the process lacked quorum, due process, and a fair hearing. The crisis escalated into a legal battle at the Judicial Council of the Union, which, after multiple sittings, nullified the impeachment, ruling that constitutional procedures were violated and that no substantive evidence or proof of a fair hearing was presented. The verdict reinstated the impeached officers and turned the episode into a defining moment in OAU’s student politics, highlighting deep tensions around accountability, governance, and Power tussle within the union.
In one of the most disturbing but widely discussed events on the Great Ife campus in 2025 was the catfishing scandal involving a group chat titled “Spicy Girls Only, NO Boys Allowed,” where a supposed female “luxury lifestyle influencer”, later exposed as an OAU graduate, impersonated a woman online under the name “Pricilia” to lure female students within Ife with promises of money, phones, and “connections.” This was exposed after he was apprehended by the student Union, his phone was seized, and sensitive files were deleted. Students were warned against sharing any media and urged to report confidentially if affected.
While it went viral on X as ‘cruise’ and campus gist, the incident left behind serious lessons that Great Ife cannot ignore. It reminded students that privacy is priceless; once sensitive content leaves your phone, you may never truly control where it ends up, and more than anything, it sends a warning about the internet: that not every friendly account is a friend, and not every ‘plug’ is real. Great Ife students must learn to move with caution, verify identities, avoid sharing compromising materials, and remember that an unknown person behind a keyboard can be anyone, with any intention.
One of the biggest entertainment highlights on the Great Ife campus in 2025 was the “Back to the Root” OAU Homecoming Concert headlined by Afrobeats star Blaqbonez, which was held on November 6 at the Afrika Amphitheatre. Organised by the Students’ Union Director of Socials and Culture, the concert featured performances from over 20 OAU artists before Blaqbonez stormed the stage later in the night, thrilling students with hit songs like Back in Uni, Like Ice Spice, and tracks from his recently released No Excuses album. The show, which blended campus talent, humour from multiple MCs, and high-energy performances, drew massive student turnout and reactions ranging from excitement and praise to mild criticism over advertised guest acts, ultimately standing out as a vibrant celebration of campus entertainment and alumni success at Great ife
One of the most painful moments for the OAU community in 2025 was the passing of the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of Council, Professor Siyan Oyeweso, in less than two weeks before the convocation; this plunged the university into deep mourning. Announced by the management on December 2, his death was described as a monumental loss to staff, students, alumni, and the wider academic community.
The vice-chancellor, Adebayo Simeon Bamire, hailed him as a towering intellectual, a rare patriot, and a stabilising force whose wisdom shaped OAU’s governance. An alumnus of Obafemi Awolowo University and one of Nigeria’s most respected historians, Professor Oyeweso was remembered for his humility, principled leadership, and lifelong devotion to scholarship and institution-building. His passing left a quiet but enduring ache on campus, marking one of the year’s most solemn chapters as the university paused to honour a man whose legacy will continue to echo through its halls.
One of OAU’s biggest pop-culture moments of 2025 came on Monday, December 22, when Afrobeats star and OAU alumnus Ahmed Ololade, popularly known as Asake, made a surprise return to campus alongside fellow alumnus Idowu Adeyemi (Yhemolee), Yoruba movie legend Muyideen Oladapo (Lala), and Korty Eniola (Korty EO), who also joined the entourage. The brief visit instantly drew a huge crowd of excited students who trailed them across campus, singing along, filming, and turning the day into a full-on “main bowl to amphitheatre” frenzy. After a stop at the vice-chancellor’s office, the alumni met students at the Amphitheatre, where dramatic arts students welcomed them with a live performance made even more special when Asake joined in to play the drums—before the crew later moved on, leaving behind a campus-wide buzz and a proud homecoming memory for Great Ife.
As the curtain falls on 2025, one thing is clear: Great Ife celebrated moments that reminded us why OAU remains a beacon of excellence, and we also confronted moments that broke our hearts, tested our sense of safety, and forced us to pause, reflect, and ask harder questions about care, leadership, and community.