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Amupitan’s magical marriage to a buffalo
While growing up, I went on hunting expeditions with elderly men. From there, I found out that the forest, as an ecosystem, is diametrically opposed to the human world. In the forest, the hunter exists with “other beings”- animals of different shades and character, plants – whose existences bear similarity with man’s. One of such beings is an unseen spirit whose existence the hunter can take for granted only at his own peril. In the forest, the hunter is in a continuous struggle with these beings but is seen as an interloper. In this forest community, every member of the ecosystem contests for primacy, sometimes in a mortal and fatal manner.
Whenever human arguments begin to sound like claptrap to me, I bail out to avoid going mad. My refuge is always among animals, in the wild. It is a place Yoruba curiously call ìgbé. Ìgbé is, literally, excreta. I find greater logic in excrement than sweet-smelling human contraptions. To explain Professor Joash Amupitan’s recent appointment as the Chairman of the Independent Nigerian Electoral Commission (INEC) and the forebodings that line the sky, I had to go in search of animals. Their lives give explanations to the weird life of man. Whether in the sullen murmur of bees, the cruel humour of monkeys, the deafening roar of lions, the ugly beauty of hyenas or the artistry in the skin of zebras, the wild is a better place to find peace of mind. Or don’t you think so?
In Ayo Adeduntan’s seminal work, What the forest told me: Yoruba hunter, culture and narrative performance (2019), the author conducted an interview with Ògúnkúnlé Òjó of Agúnrege village in Oyo State. Adeduntan narrated how Òjó’s hunter master, Ògúnòṣun, married an efòn, the buffalo. In description, the African buffalo is one of Africa’s ‘big five’ safari animals, alongside rhinoceros, elephant, leopard and lion. Living only in Africa and Asia, the buffalo is reputed for its huge horns. Though a herbivore like cows, feeding only on plants, the animal often falls prey to predators like hunters, lions, leopards, hyenas and wild dogs. It can also be vicious; in order to defend herself, the buffalo strikes its prey with her horns.
According to Ògúnkúnlé Òjó, this particular day, he and another colleague on hunting expedition had shot the buffalo in the Agúnrege village forest. The animal immediately fell. Apparently frightened by the monstrosity of their kill, one of them had to run home to fetch their master, Ògúnòṣun. As they were about to get to the spot where the animal was felled, narrated Ògúnkúnlé, they suddenly saw a very pretty woman walking towards them. I remember Odolaye Aremu, Ilorin Dadakuada music lord, comparing the suddenness of death to the instantaneous blow of a calamity. He sang, “…pèkí làá ko èèmò.” Said Ògúnkúnlé, “we ran into the animal, that is, the wife. She was a very beautiful woman” which in Yoruba is, “àfi pẹ̀kí n l’a bá pàdé ẹran l’ọ́nà, èyuùn ìyàwó. Arẹwa obinrin ni”. What Ògúnkúnlé implied was that the woman they met on the road to the buffalo’s remains was the same buffalo who had now transformed into a beautiful woman. It reminds one of Fagunwa’s Igbo Olódùmarè and how Olówóayé, swept off his feet by the sultry beauty of a woman named àjẹ́, was oblivious that he was making advances to a spirit woman.
What eventually transpired between Ògúnòṣun and the buffalo-turned-beautiful woman is instructive. “Our master exchanged greetings with her (the animal). She greeted our master, kneeling down in respect. This is no hearsay; I, Òjó the hunter, was present there that day. Our master wooed her and they both agreed to marry each other. She (however) warned: ‘Now that you have decided to marry me, be informed that the day you, out of anger, call me an animal, that day would be your last. It would not offend me as much if you hit me so much that I am wounded and bleeding.’
“So they got married. She became pregnant and had the first child, the second and the third child. There was a quarrel between her and my master one day. As they quarreled, my master angrily insulted her: : ‘Àb’órí ì rẹ burú ni, ìwọ ọmọ ẹranko yìí’ – ‘You good-for-nothing unlucky daughter of an animal.’ ‘Oh!’ the woman said, ‘You are done for.’ That was where the trouble started.”
Writes Adeduntan, “The woman is at once seized by a paroxysm of anger in which she is transformed into a buffalo, bristling with vengeance. The hunter, now helpless and a fugitive, runs towards Ìgbàdì, a prehistoric mountain on the outskirts of the village, where the buffalo catches up with him. The buffalo gores him badly before fleeing into the forest, never to return. The hunter survives the attack, but limps from the resulting fracture in his leg until his death.”
Ògúnkúnlé Òjó then ended the story, stating that the buffalo woman then turned into her pre-marital animal state. “Yes. It is no hearsay. She transformed into an animal by Ademọla’s father’s house beside Igbadi Hill. That was when the two of them started to fight. Our master tried all his power and failed. That was how the woman ran away forever. One of the children is dead. The remaining two are still in my master’s house,” Ògúnkúnlé said.
The forest is a realm that is implicitly uncertain. Those who claim that forest conversations between the hunter and other beings who live in the wild are purely African fantasy underrate our reality. The truth is that the hunter shares the forest cosmos with other beings. While the hunter believes he possesses some superiority over animals and other beings in the forest, the truth is that it is a shared world. Indeed, the Yoruba worldview does not approve of man’s superordinate status claim in relation to other earthly creations. He is thus in constant war against these forest antagonists whom he cannot pacify and who also see him as a usurper. This reminds me of a childhood fairy tale we were told about Segbe, a boy who veered into the wild on a festival day to hunt game. The animals descended on him and made a barbecue of his flesh. When the search party scoured the forest for him the second day, the birds sang “Who is there searching for Segbe? Human beings were celebrating in their homes. We, animals, were having ours in the forest. We have made a meal of Segbe’s flesh.”
In animals, there is no hypocrisy, no pretension. Victims and victimizers are aware of their naturally ordained roles and do not pull any shroud over this. In their wild habitat, these mammal forebears of man seem to explain better the contradictions of human life and the ill logic of the life of man. It prompted my disagreement with Fela Anikulapo’s concept of “animal talk”. While excoriating the Muhammadu Buhari military government’s War Against Indiscipline philosophy of openly beating offending Nigerians, Fela called that philosophy a talk of animals. My disagreement is that, animals’ lives speak to man but man is too deaf to listen.
In Yoruba hunters’ narratives, while there is always a hunter, animal and spirit relationship, this symbiosis often ends up in calamity. While D. O. Fagunwa’s narrative of the relationship between the trio of man, animal and spirits in the wild was fabulism, he took it out of the real life man-animal forest ecosystem relations and encounters. Fagunwa’s books opened our eyes to the symbiosis of this relationship. You can see this relationship in the encounter between Olówóayé, Fagunwa’s hunter and protagonist, and the one-eyed elf called Èsù-kékeré-òde, in the book he entitled, The Forest of God, Igbó Olódùmarè. In another of his book, Ogbójú ọdẹ Nínú Igbó Irúnmalè, this contest for supremacy between man and the spirit was illustrated by how a character called Tèmbèlẹ̀kun, a flesh-eating spirit, devoured Lamọrin, a hunter. Such is the nature of the dog-eat-dog relationship in the wild. ̣
So, last Thursday, as Professor Amupitan appeared in the Nigerian senate for screening, he suddenly pounced on my mind like a rampaging leopard. Whenever a hunter encounters an animal in the wild, his discerning mind tells him whether she is indeed an animal or an animal-turned-man. Putting on that same lens, what I saw last Thursday was an incestuous relationship between a hunter and a buffalo that would soon go awry. The hunter-buffalo’s love-turned-sour narrated above tells me I wasn’t mistaken. My reading is that of a tragic relationship that will soon come full throttle between Aso Rock, Amupitan and the Nigerian people.
History is Amupitan’s first nemesis. It holds that, like Ògúnòṣun, the hunter who got married to a buffalo-human, the new INEC boss is entering a graveyard of history where he would be so badly gored that he might emerge therefrom with a permanent scar. Since Sir Hugh Clifford’s Legislative Council election of 1920, Nigeria’s elections have been the graveyard of their electoral umpires. Though the electoral umpire’s name was not mentioned in history, after this 1920 election and the ones held from 1923-1938 which involved the House of Docemo (Dosumu) and the status of Oba of Lagos, for elections in Nigeria, there has been the proverbial case of no respite for the hen that perches on the rope and none for the rope either. There was crisis in the 1941 election that had NYM foundation member and Secretary General of the Nigerian Road Transport Union, Samuel Akisanya and Ernest Sese Ikoli, another NYM foundation member, president and editor of the NYM newspaper organ, Daily Service.
Since then, Nigeria has had electoral chiefs whose tenures ended in fiasco and, or ignominy. One was Ronald Edward Wraith who came into office in 1958. He was followed by Eyo Ita Esua (1964 – 1966). Esua, from present day Cross River State, was a teacher and unionist. Appointed in 1964 by Prime Minister Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, Esua became Nigeria’s first known indigenous electoral umpire and presided over the 1964 parliamentary and 1965 regional elections. Since then, we have had other indigenous umpires like Michael Ani, a career civil servant and former commissioner in General Ironsi’s government, who also hailed from Cross River State. Ani was appointed by the Olusegun Obasanjo military regime which created what it called the Federal Electoral Commission (FEDECO). Ani then became the umpire of the controversial 1979 elections which returned civil governance after 13 years of military rule.
In 1980, President Shehu Shagari appointed Victor Ovie-Whisky who was in that office till 1983. From 1987 when General Ibrahim Babangida appointed Eme Awa, a professor of political science as head of an election body he christened National Electoral Commission (NEC) as part of his transition to civilian rule, Awa was in NEC till 1989. He began the fad of academics being heads of Nigeria’s electoral bodies. Awa was succeeded in 1989 by Prof Humphrey Nwosu, who was there till the stillbirth election of 1993. He was succeeded by Prof Okon Edet Uya, a historian from Akwa Ibom State in 1993. Uya conducted no major election by the time General Sani Abacha took over the reins of power in November 1993. He then dissolved the NEC in 1994 and rechristened it the National Electoral Commission of Nigeria (NECON).
Abacha diluted the long obsession with academics as electoral umpires with Chief Sumner Dagogo-Jack, a lawyer and administrator from Rivers state. He conducted the local and legislative elections of that period and was in office till Abacha’s death in 1998. Gen Abdulsalami Abubakar then dissolved NECON and established the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), putting Ephraim Akpata, a Supreme Court judge from Edo State, at the helm of affairs. Akpata conducted the 1999 general elections which produced Obasanjo as president. When he died in 2000, Obasanjo appointed an academic and technocrat, Abel Guobadia to conduct the 2003 elections. Guobadia was there till May 2005 when he was replaced by another professor, Maurice Iwu who was in office from June 2005 to April 2010. Iwu’s INEC superintended over the 2007 general elections. Then came Attahiru Jega in June 2010 and was there till June 2015, and replaced in November 2015 by Mahmood Yakubu, a Bauchi State indigene.
Enters Amupitan. His first shot in the senate last week was to confront the unpalatable graveyard image of electoral umpire bosses with beautiful semiotics. In semiotic theory, users deploy signs and symbols to create meanings. This they do through language, gestures and images. As he appeared at the senate screening exercise, the professor of law appeared with his family. As a student of semiotics, Amupitan knew that a portrayal of the presence of his children on his first interface with Nigerians has great powers. With it, people could be convinced that, as a family man, he would be humane. However, the reality of what he is about to contend with far transcends the tender-heartedness of the family.
At the senate, Amupitan spoke very well. Just like his predecessors. The professor from the sleepy town of Ayetoro Gbede said his life is influenced by a tripod of God, hard work and mentorship. He then promised to audit the system at INEC and return trust and integrity to the Nigerian electoral process. He even advocated an electoral offences commission and a whistle-blowing policy.
Soon, Amupitan will realize that he is in the same boat with persons for whom God exists only as a political slogan or refrain. Beyond their lips, there is no one so called. To his shock, he will realize that, in this God thing, he is alone. Again, more than ever before, Amupitan, the literal rendition of which means a history-maker, will indeed make history. He will also tell a story. What story he will tell and the history he will make are part of the omen of a gathering cloud in the sky I see. Vultures are already hovering, signifying that the story the professor will tell will not only not be significantly different from his predecessors’, it could be worse. First is that, unlike many previous elections, Nigerians have the painful belief that the winner of the 2027 elections, especially the presidential election, is already known. This will leave Amupitan to contend with his own ambiguities.
Second is the gale of defections that has rocked Nigerian politics in the last few months. The defections render party politics no different from the petty business of market square transactions. They thus make Amupitan’s job a potential failure. The belief is that the Senators/House of Representatives members and governors changing parties like chameleon changes colour, are driven by the quest to have the party at the federal lip-frog them into victory. How would Amupitan deny the party of his appointor victory in 2027?
Already, Amupitan’s ambivalent heritage may also sound the death knell on his electoral umpire role. While the presidency gleefully flaunted him as having “hailed from the North Central,” everyone knows that putting Ayetoro Gbede as northern Nigeria is one of those geographical mis-ascriptions of today’s Nigeria. A town in Okunland, in Kogi West Senatorial District of Kogi State, Amupitan hails from this town founded in 1927 by early Christian converts. The truth is, Ayetoro Gbede is Yorubaland. So, if northern Nigeria, which is today embroiled in a fight with the Villa on allegation of under-developing the North, loses the 2027 election to Amupitan’s perceived brother, there cannot but be wahala.
Pardon my pessimism. What I see is Amupitan, with his lustering credentials, ending up brutally bruised. This liaison with a buffalo-turned pretty woman will not likelym end well.
In a significant boost to Kisi educational development, Honourable Shina Peller, the Ayedero of Yorubaland and former member of the House of Representatives, has donated five million naira (₦5,000,000) to the Kisi Education Trust Fund.
The announcement was made during the annual Kisi Day celebrations held on Saturday, February 7, 2026.
The event, which served as a major cultural and developmental milestone for the community, brought together prominent indigenes, traditional leaders, and residents of the Oyo State town.
Addressing the gathering, Peller emphasized the critical role that education plays in the advancement of any society. He noted that the Trust Fund serves as a vital tool for ensuring that the youth of Kisi have access to quality learning opportunities and financial support for their academic pursuits.
The Kisi Education Trust Fund was established to bridge the gap in educational infrastructure and provide scholarships for brilliant but underprivileged students within the community.
Peller’s ₦5 million contribution is expected to provide an immediate impetus for several ongoing projects spearheaded by the fund.
Kisi Day is an annual festival celebrated by the people of Kisi (the headquarters of the Irepo Local Government Area). It is a day dedicated to celebrating the rich cultural heritage of the town, discussing developmental challenges and solutions and raising funds for community-led initiatives.
Moreover, the annual event is aimed at strengthening the bonds between Kisi indigenes at home and in the diaspora.
The 2026 edition has been hailed as a success, with Peller’s donation serving as a highlight of the day’s fundraising activities, signaling a renewed commitment to human capital development in the region.
Honourable Peller, a former member of the House of Representatives representing Iseyin/Itesiwaju/Kajola/Iwajowa Federal Constituency, attended the event not just as a statesman, but as a “son of the soil.” His mother, Alhaja Silifatu Peller, hails from Kisi, a connection the former lawmaker frequently cites as a source of his commitment to the town’s progress.
In his keynote remarks, Honourable Peller stated:
“Education is the bedrock of any meaningful development. My mother’s roots are here, and my heart remains with the people of Kisi.
“We must ensure that the next generation of Kisi indigenes are equipped with the knowledge and skills to compete globally. This donation is an investment in that future.”
The fund’s leadership expressed deep gratitude, noting that the contribution would significantly assist in:scholarship schemes such as providing tuition assistance for high-achieving students from low-income families, rehabilitating aging classrooms and providing modern learning materials to local schools and others.
The Iba of Kisi, HRM Oba Masoud Aweda Oyekola Lawal (Arowoduye II), along with the Kisi Progressive Union (KPU), praised the gesture as a “shining example of patriotism.”
As Kisi continues to grow as a major agricultural and cultural hub in northern Oyo State, such interventions are seen as vital to maintaining the town’s reputation for resilience and educational excellence.
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Breaking Barriers: How the FG-ASUU Agreement Can Transform Nigerian Universities – By Tunji Oladejo
*The recent agreement between the Federal Government (FG) and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) represents an important turning point for Nigeria’s education sector. This landmark deal, which includes a 40% salary increase for academic staff and improved working conditions, is a potential game-changer in ending the perennial labour crises that have plagued Nigerian universities for years.*
The agreement addresses long-standing issues such as inadequate funding, poor infrastructure and low staff morale, which have contributed to frequent strikes and disruptions in academic activities. Key provisions include a 40% upward review of academic staff salaries, improved pension plans and the establishment of a National Research Council with statutory funding of at least 1% of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
This development is notable for several reasons. It is the first time a sitting Nigerian President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has taken direct ownership of the dispute and prioritised its resolution. Dr Tunji Alausa, Minister of Education, drove the breakthrough in the crisis, championing dialogue and mutual respect. “A historic turning point”, he declared, emphasising the government’s commitment to keeping students in school and addressing academic staff concerns. By engaging ASUU with “the highest level of mutual respect”, he has paved the way for restored trust and confidence in Nigeria’s universities.
The deal addresses structural weaknesses in the university system, aiming to improve academic standards and global competitiveness.
The government has established a National Universities Commission (NUC) Committee to oversee its implementation, with regular progress reports to the President. Key mechanisms include an implementation committee chaired by the Minister of Education, a joint monitoring group to track progress and specific budgetary allocations for university improvements.
Interestingly, the government has committed to upholding university autonomy, allowing institutions to operate independently in line with existing laws and regulations. This includes respecting the rights of universities to govern themselves, appoint key officers, and determine the conditions of service for their staff. To facilitate this, laws like the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board Act and the National Universities Commission Act will be reviewed and amended to remove impediments to autonomy and academic freedom. By doing so, the government aims to protect academic freedom and promote institutional self-governance.
The implementation of the agreement’s key provisions is already underway, with the government having released a circular directing the full implementation of the wages component, effective from January 1, 2026. Here are some specific timelines: the 40% salary increase for academic staff took effect on January 1, 2026; stabilisation and restoration fund: the government will provide N30 billion, disbursed in three equal instalments of N10 billion annually from 2026 to 2028; and the agreement is set for review after three years.
As for the state universities complying with the agreement’s terms, it’s unclear if state governors are duty-bound to implement it. Will they comply? That is the big question and that is the hurdle for the implementation monitoring committee that will oversee the process to cross.
Challenges ahead! Yes! The implementation monitoring committee is expected to identify and address potential challenges, especially the issue of transparency and accountability in the stabilisation and restoration fund. Can they pull it off? Will they deliver? Boosting Universities, the fund is to revive and strengthen academic activities likely focusing on infrastructure, research and staff welfare.
For success, the committee must keep everyone on track, ensuring that all parties adhere to agreed terms, including the 40% salary hike and N30bn Stabilisation Fund. The government must establish communication with key stakeholders, such as state governments and university administrations. Collaboration is key!
Funding challenges and transparency are the next issues to address. How’s the government planning to tackle them? Are there plans for audits or tracking mechanisms for the N30bn fund?
This agreement is expected to boost education quality and research output. Improved staff morale can attract and retain top talent, while enhanced research funding can drive innovation and global collaboration. Reduced disruptions mean more academic days and improved learning outcomes.
Universities can capitalise on this agreement to drive meaningful change. By allocating funds strategically, they can upgrade facilities, improve accommodation and enhance healthcare services for students. Investing in digital infrastructure will also prepare students for the modern workforce and improve learning experiences. Encouraging alumni and private sector partnerships can bring in additional resources and expertise.
The FG-ASUU agreement will significantly transform Nigeria’s academic sector. With a committee overseeing implementation and the government engaging stakeholders, it’s poised to boost salaries, fund universities and get things moving. Delivery is key—let’s hope they nail it!
Tunji Oladejo, mnipr, JP, writes from the University of Ibadan and is the Chairman of The Progressive Forum, Ibadan (TPFI), via oladejo65@gmail.com. 08077284442
The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Oyo State Council, has congratulated Governor Seyi Makinde and the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Adewolu Ladoja, Arusa 1, on honours conferred on them by The Sun Newspapers.
In a statement jointly signed by Chairman, Akeem Abas and Secretary, Dayo Adu, the NUJ said Makinde won Sun Political Personality of the Year, while Oba Ladoja received the Lifetime Achievement Award.
The NUJ said that Makinde’s award recognised his purposeful leadership, people-centred governance, infrastructural transformation and consistent democratic values delivered across Oyo State.
The council said Governor Seyi Makinde’s visionary policies strengthened media freedom, improved media-government relations and enhanced public trust through transparent communication, participatory governance and inclusive development initiatives.
The NUJ also congratulated Oba Rashidi Ladoja on the Lifetime Achievement Award, citing his cultural leadership, peace building, wisdom and enduring contributions to Ibadanland.
It said Oba Ladoja’s lifelong commitment to public service, politics and the traditional institution exemplified humility, statesmanship, sacrifice, while fostering harmony and development.
The union commended The Sun Newspapers for promoting excellence, accountability and national discourse through journalism awards, celebrating impactful leadership and democratic culture.
According to NUJ, such recognitions encourage public office holders and traditional rulers to deepen service delivery, uphold ethical standards and prioritise citizens’ welfare nationwide.
The council reaffirmed its commitment to objective reporting, professional journalism, constructive engagement with government and institutions, while supporting democracy and accountability in Oyo State.
It urged leaders at all levels to draw inspiration from the awardees by embracing transparency, inclusiveness and empathy in governance.
The council wished Gov. Makinde and Oba Ladoja continued wisdom, good health and greater service to humanity and Oyo State.
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Ahmed Raji(SAN) Accomplish Another Landmark Feat, Launch New School Block, Handover Ultra-Modern CBT Center To JAMB.
Renowned legal icon, philanthropist and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Alhaji Ahmed Adeniyi Raji, has once again reaffirmed his unwavering commitment to educational advancement as he is getting ready to launch a newly constructed school building and hand-over a modern Computer Based Test (CBT) Centre to Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) in Iseyin, Oyo State.
This historic event, scheduled to hold on Wednesday, February 11, 2026, is expected to attract top educationists, including the Registrar of JAMB, Professor Isiaq Oloyede, who will officially receive the CBT centre on behalf of the examination body.
According to statement issued and signed by Hon. Saheed Adejare Yusuf Alaran, brother, development partner to the legal luminary and made available to media, said this intervention initiative is part of Alhaji Raji’s long-standing vision to make quality education affordable, accessible and all-inclusive, irrespective of students’ socio-economic background.
Hon. Adejare Yusuf Alaran disclosed that the legal icon has taken full responsibility for the construction of a modern school complex comprising classrooms, administrative offices and fully equipped laboratories for the Senior Secondary arm of Raji Okeesa Memorial Comprehensive High School. The new facilities are designed to enhance teaching, learning and overall academic excellence.
In addition, Alhaji Raji has also built a well-equipped JAMB CBT Centre with a seating capacity of 250 candidates, fitted to meet global examination standards. The centre is expected to significantly ease the burden on students who previously travelled long distances to sit for UTME examinations.
Hon. Adejare Yusuf Alaran further noted that the official unveiling and handover will ensure the CBT centre is efficiently managed by JAMB for optimal use. He stressed that the initiative would save thousands of youths from avoidable stress while promoting fairness and efficiency in examination processes.
With this latest gesture, Alhaji Raji has once again etched his name in gold as a steadfast champion of education and youth empowerment in Oyo State and beyond.
Oyo State Government has reaffirmed its preparedness for the official commencement of the Computer-Based Test (CBT) mode of the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) examinations.
This is in line with the Federal Government’s directive for a gradual transition from pen-and-paper to full digital testing.
The Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Hon. Olusegun Olayiwola, disclosed this while receiving the Zonal Coordinator and Deputy Registrar of West African Examination Council(WAEC), Mr. Waheed Amode, and his management team during a courtesy visit to his office on Wednesday, February 4, 2026.
Olayiwola revealed that Oyo State Governor, Engr. Seyi Makinde has directed that the cost implications for the procurement of over 60,000 laptops for public senior secondary schools across the state be worked out, noting that the move is aimed at positioning Oyo State ahead of the full adoption of CBT examinations.
He commended WAEC for the proactive measures taken to address the challenges experienced during the 2025 examinations, while pledging the Ministry’s continued support in curbing examination malpractice and preventing vandalisation of school facilities.
In his remarks, Amode said the visit was to appreciate the Oyo State Ministry of Education for its support during the 2025 WAEC examinations and for its consistent collaboration with the Council over the years, describing the Ministry as a key stakeholder in the success of WAEC operations.
He disclosed that registration for the 2026 May/June WAEC examination closed on 2nd February, 2026, adding that the forthcoming examinations would be conducted using both CBT and pen-and-paper modes depending on the readiness of individual schools, while schools interested in full CBT participation are expected to formally indicate their interest through official correspondence.
Amode also warned that severe penalties await any candidate caught with mobile phones in the examination hall.
He stressed that such misconduct could lead to the cancellation of an entire school’s results, depending on the circumstances, and urged principals and teachers to uphold integrity in order to strengthen educational standards.
Meanwhile, Honourable Olusegun Olayiwola has called on parents, guardians and teachers to strengthen collaboration in order to address moral decline in schools, noting that effective partnership between the home and the school is essential for raising disciplined, responsible and value-driven students.
The Commissioner made the call while receiving members of the National Education Reform Movement (NERM), urging stakeholders to prioritise discipline and quality teaching, while NERM leader, Mr. Adewumi Abass, warned that weak parent–teacher synergy and rising examination malpractice pose serious threats to Nigeria’s education system and recommended the use of the resource book, “Parenting for Excellence,” as a guide for improvement.
The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Oyo State Council, has congratulated a distinguished Patron and renowned mediapreneur, Olooye Adeboyega Taofeek Adegoke, on the occasion of his birthday, describing him as a pillar of support for journalists and media development in the state.
In a congratulatory statement jointly signed by the Chairman, Mr. Akeem Abas, and Secretary, Dayo Adu, the Council extolled Oloye Adegoke’s outstanding commitment to the growth of the Union and the welfare of its members.
The council noted that as a responsible and dependable Patron, Oloye Adegoke has consistently demonstrated deep passion for the progress of journalism, maintaining a cordial and mutually beneficial relationship with the NUJ Oyo State Council.
It added that his unreserved benevolence to the Union and to journalists who cross his path, stressing that his interventions and support have positively impacted many practitioners within the media space.
According to the Council, the celebrant has remained a strong pillar behind several NUJ programmes and activities, offering support that has contributed immensely to the successful execution of professional and welfare-driven initiatives.
The Union particularly commended his rare gesture of giving without demanding anything in return, describing his selflessness as a virtue worthy of emulation within and outside the media industry.
Oyo NUJ added that Oloye Adegoke’s contributions as a mediapreneur have also helped in advancing media enterprise, capacity building, and opportunities for journalists across the state.
The Council wished him a happy birthday and prayed for continued good health, greater accomplishments, and more impactful years in service to humanity and the journalism profession.
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