This is as he claimed that the huge sum could be diverted to more challenging ventures when the ongoing power project in the university is completed to facilitate regular power supply and reduce economic burden on the institution.

Professor Ogunbodede disclosed this while addressing a Press Conference to herald the school’s 60th Anniversary Celebration on Tuesday at the University campus.

The University was established on June 08, 1961 and began classes in October 1962 as University of Ife before it was renamed to Obafemi Awolowo University on May 12, 1987 in honour of the first Premier of the then Western Region, Chief Obafemi Awolowo.

He added that apart from the electrification projects, other ongoing development work include the airstrip project, construction of Phase 3 hostel for students, staff housing scheme, Aeronautical Engineering department, International Student Exchange centre, Student Affairs Building, th “Jubilee House”,- a-ten storey Centra Bank of Nigeria Building among others.

“The Rural Electrification Agency (REA) 8.03MW power project for the supply of electricity to the University is on-going and almost completed. This will enable OAU generate its own electricity. The University processed and obtained from the Transmission Corporation of Nigeria the Marketing License as an Electricity distributor, the first Nigerian University to enjoy the privilege. 

The aim is to reduce the economic burden of high tariff and ensure regular electricity supply to enhance its various academic activities. The University presently pays 80 million Naira per month for electricity and additionally, over two million Naira per month on Diesel to power generators”, he said.

Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has said universities in the country will not reopen until the Federal Government honours the agreement it struck with the union.

ASUU National President, Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi, stated this while speaking at a town hall meeting at the African Hall, the University of Ilorin.

Ogunyemi insisted that the agreement must be honoured, before the federal government makes any announcement on reopening of universities.

He made it clear that ASUU would unfold its next agenda, if the government refuses to negotiate the 2009 agreement signed by both parties.

“I think it is better we wait. When we get to that bridge, we will cross it.

“I can’t open our strategy here; whatever you do is about strategy; let the government refuse to negotiate, we will unfold our strategy then,” Ogunyemi said.

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According to him, ASUU went on strike since March, because of the government’s insensitivity to university education in the country.

Ogunyemi said some of the union’s demands included funding of university education, which the government had reneged on in the last 10 years.

“There is a deliberate attempt to kill university education in the country. Some universities use stoves in their laboratories instead of burners and buckets to fetch water to perform experiments; it’s as bad as that,” he said

Recall that the Academic Staff Union of Universities have been on Strike since March this year and despite the government asking that schools resume on 12th of October, as some state universities have also reopened too, the Federal universities in the country still can't open because of the ongoing strike.

While many Nigerians have been on protest both online and off for SARS to be dissolved, another photo was shared on one Unizik Aspirants Group on Facebook where some women were seen with placards protesting that the ASUU strike be called off so their children can go back to school, as their educational system is at stake.

Going through the reaction box, I discovered that many of the students have already given up hope of resuming school this year as they are even angry the protest went on in the first instance. Many were asking if they begged them (the women) to go for the protest as it's obvious they're already engaged in other things that are quite productive to them.