A group of Ekiti indigenes in the United States of America has presented an award of honor to the founder of Afe Babalola University Ado-Ekiti (ABUAD) and elder statesman, Aare Afe Babalola, SAN.
The group, under the auspices of Ekiti Kete Coalition, USA, said the award, tagged ‘Outstanding Achiever of All Time,’ was in recognition of Babalola’s contributions to the creation and development of the state.
Additionally, the group presented the ‘Outstanding Political Icon’ award to the Senate Leader and Senator representing the Ekiti Central Senatorial District, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele.
The President of the group, Hon. Joe Olugbamila, who presented the award to the ABUAD founder over the weekend in Ado-Ekiti, alongside other executives of the group, explained that there is a need for the people to celebrate the nonagenarian in his lifetime.
Olugbamila revealed that those in the diaspora recognize the impact of the legal icon in education, health, and the legal profession, including his unmatched philanthropic gestures toward the development of the state.
He commended the Ado-Ekiti community for setting aside October 18 as Afe Babalola Day, which he said would further help in showing appreciation to the elder statesman for his efforts in the state and the country, allowing future generations to acknowledge them.
The President, however, criticized the members of the State House of Assembly for rejecting the bill declaring Afe Babalola Day in the state, calling on the state governor, Biodun Oyebanji, and other stakeholders to revisit the legislative proposal in the future.
According to him, “We need to celebrate our revered legal icon while he is alive because he deserves all the recognition we can give him for his tireless efforts towards the development of our state and the country.
“Baba Afe is an impact advocate and a leading legal light, and we have seen what he is doing with the iconic ABUAD, multi-system hospital, and the industrial park, to mention a few. They are all first-class facilities.
“We came from the USA to celebrate him, to encourage others in society, and to change our mindset towards development.”
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In response, Afe Babalola commended the group for recognizing his efforts from the diaspora and also for being the first to propose the idea of declaring a day in the state to celebrate him.
Babalola, who revealed that he would continue to contribute his quota towards achieving a better and changed society, called on the people to show more love to one another.
The ABUAD founder argued that there is no country as blessed and endowed as Nigeria, urging people to imbibe the spirit of hard work, determination, and resolution in achieving greatness.
He added that he established the university to produce graduates who would change the narrative about the country, emphasizing the need for citizens to have a change of mindset for the country to be great.
