Chancellor Afe Babalola University, Ado Ekiti, Aare Afe Babalola (SAN), has decried the proliferation of illegal and tertiary institutions in the country calling on the National Universities Commission (NUC) to shut down such and stop their operations.
The eminent lawyer who also called for the arrest of staff of all the illegal institutions said their operations remained major weapons against quality and functional education in Nigeria and world at large.
The founder of Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti (ABUAD) spoke yesterday in Ado Ekiti during his investiture as “Fellow of the King’s College, London”, for his transformative contributions to the society.
He said, “The biggest menace facing quality education today, especially in Nigeria and across Africa, is the proliferation of mushroom satellite campuses and study centres that have long deviated from their original conceptualization and intent.
“What we expect is for the National University Commission (NUC) to close down mushroom universities. There are many universities which are illegal, which commenced operations without the permission of NUC.
“NUC published their names, why don’t they arrest owners of such illegal universities, why don’t you close them down?
“Why can’t they make the staff of such universities face punishment and put them before the court of law and yet, they are building new ones everyday”.
Babalola said that education remains the surest key to quality and productive living and to wipe out societal ills such as religious bigotry, corruption, ineptitude, bribery in Nigeria.
“Poor leadership and fellowship, wanton acquisition of illegal wealth, disobedience to legitimate court orders are among such ills be-devilling the nation”.
In his address, the Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Biodun Oyebanji, lauded the giant strides of Babalola in the areas of medicine, law, inventions and sciences.
Oyebanji, who was represented at the event by the State’s Head of Service, Folakemi Olomojobi, said his footprints across all sectors has made him the father of the state, stressing that his uncommon humanity and impact have ranked him higher against all odds.
The vice president, International Engagement and Service of King’s College, London, Professor Funmi Olonisakin, who led the team to ABUAD, said the fellowship award was in recognition of the legal luminary’s transformative contributions to society.
“We are here to award the fellowship of King’s College, London to Aare Afe Babalola, whose fellowship is typically given to people who have made transformative contributions to the society at large or King’s College, London”. She said
Also, the vice-chancellor of the university, Professor Smaranda Olarinde, stated that the investiture was in recognition of Afe Babalola’s efforts in all ramifications, which, according to her, makes the legal icon the exemplar of the power of transformative education.