ASUU gives ₦1.1m scholarships to 11 needy University of Ibadan students
- Eleven indigent University of Ibadan students received scholarships totalling ₦1.1m from the ASUU branch on Thursday.
- The awards ranged from ₦200,000 to ₦50,000, with 56 students applying and 11 selected.
- Union officials said the aim is to keep education within reach of children from poor homes.
Eleven students of the University of Ibadan have received scholarships worth a total of ₦1.1m from the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), the union's UI branch said.
The cheques were presented on Thursday at the branch's congress, according to the three outlets that reported the event. The union said 56 indigent students applied, but only 11 were found qualified after screening.
The money was split three ways. Two students got ₦200,000 each under the national ASUU scholarship scheme, five got ₦100,000 each from the UI branch, and four got ₦50,000 each from a donation by Prof Tajudeen Akanji of the university.
Who got what
The two national awardees were Olawale Esther Inioluwa, a 300-level Archaeology and Anthropology student, and Orji Cynthia Adaeze, a 300-level Political Science student.
The branch-funded ₦100,000 awards went to Dosunmu Mazeedah Omobonike of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Oyeniyi Oluwaseyi, a 400-level Pharmacy student, Aanuoluwa Adeshewa Mary, a 400-level Physiotherapy student, Ameenat Eniola of Economics, and Olowode Afusat Temitayo.
The four students sponsored by Akanji were Ogundare Marvellous, Williams Happiness of Psychology, Oladepo Peter Olamide of Microbiology and Gbadegesin Daniel, a 400-level Banking and Finance student.
Speaking for the branch chairman, Dr Adefemi Afolabi, the UI-ASUU vice-chairman, Dr Tayo Ajibade, said the national body had asked every chapter to help students from poor homes. He said poverty should not stop a Nigerian child from getting an education.
Our union has recognised that the best gift that you can give to anyone is education.
Akanji said he would keep supporting indigent students for as long as he lived. He recalled growing up as the son of a carpenter and said education had changed his life.
Inioluwa, who said she did not expect the award, urged fellow students to take their studies seriously. Olamide thanked the union and said the scheme would push students to work harder.
Sources differ slightly on some spellings of the beneficiaries' names and on the spelling of the donor's surname, which appears as Akanji in some reports and Akanbi in others.
What happens next
The union said branches and individual lecturers across the country run similar support schemes every year, and it urged its members to sponsor students in need.
