By Bunmi Omoogun
“The greatness of humanity is not in being human, but in being humane.” – Mahatma Gandhi
October 11, 2019 was a clear portrait of what Chief Obafemi Awolowo preached before his death. Humanitarian gestures come in varieties. Chief Obafemi Awolowo harped so much on Education and the success of the free education programme of the then Premier of Western Region helped produce notable individuals who are shining stars today.
Today, the echo of the late Sage is louder in death than when alive because of his enduring legacies.
Many are inspired by Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s profile as a courageous leader and there is an admiration for his life of courage.
But the number of Awolowo’s admirers and protégés have continued to grow all over the world.
One admirer is Distinguished Senator representing Ogun West at the National Assembly, Sen. Tolu Odebiyi.
The Senator has always been driven by the pull to be of help as he shared a firm belief that life would be more meaningful if we commit ourselves to supporting indigent students, the weak and the downtrodden.
The Tolu Odebiyi Undergraduate Scholarship Award held in Ilaro, Ogun state on the 11th of October 2019, is an initiative of Senator Tolu Odebiyi and the TOD Foundation. At this event,
54 Undergraduate Students were presented N100,000 each as Scholarship endowment for their outstanding performance in their various Institutions. The cash will be given to them every year till graduation.
In his welcome address, the Senator said, “The Undergraduate Scholarship Award is part of my commitment to implementing transformative schemes that will foster youth development in my beloved Constituency, Ogun West”.
The seriousness with which the Senator and his team who handled the novel initiative informed the series of unprecedented engagement and meetings that resulted in the speedy delivery of the project, barely three months in office as a Senator. The Senator praised the team for the feat they are able to record.
Sen. Tolu Odebiyi has always reiterated that education is the bedrock of any society that wants to be successful. Helping the indigent students, for him, is a great way to make a life by giving them the opportunity to actualise their dreams.
It was J.F Kennedy way back in 1963 who said “Our progress as a nation cannot be faster than our progress in education”
So the Senator was right to put education first.
Fuelled with a never-ending determination to increase the fortunes of his people, the humane and passionate Senator noted that only the right initiatives and support structure will make the Students compete favourably with the best in the world.
That is one of the reasons he sets out to empower the undergraduate students.
“This Scholarship Award is the first step in line with many initiatives under consideration by the Tolu Odebiyi Foundation towards economic development of Ogun West. I feel this is the noblest thing to do in a district such as ours”. He said.
There are plenty of programmes geared towards building capacity and opportunities for the people of Ogun West.
For the Senator, starting with Education is key. According to him, “Education is vital to our economy and we will ensure that our best Students are given the opportunity to reach their full potentials”
He sees Education as a tripod to which his developmental strides will stand on. Education tells us a story about our region, carry a very crucial part of our history and is an important key to the development of our nation.
It is believed that the ideas such as the ones Sen. Odebiyi is bringing to the political scene will usher in the desired solutions to the many problems the people are faced with.
There is a memorable line that stuck from a Philosopher, William James “The great use of one’s life is to spend it for something that will outlast it, for the value of life is computed not by its duration but by its donation”.