A group under the aegis of Youth Arise Movement has rejected the plan by the Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde to rename the Polytechnic, Ibadan after the late Dr. Omololu Olunloyo.
The group urged the Governor to reverse the decision considering the negative impacts on the institution and the image of noting that Olunloyo has not brought any significant value to the institution.
The group stated this in a statement signed by former President of Student Union Government, Comrade Ademola Babatunde Abidemi on Sunday in Abuja.
The statement called on the Governor not to undermine the core values of the Polytechnic to score cheap political goals.adding that roads , or cocoa house should be named after the late Olunloyo and not the Polytechnic Ibadan.
鈥 It would be recalled that the Executive Governor of Oyo State, His Excellency, Governor Seyi Makinde made a pronouncement that the Polytechnic Ibadan shall now be called Omololu Olunloyo Polytechnic as the first rector of the institution.鈥 We recognise the intentions and the will of Governor Seyi Makinde to immortalise the late Dr. Omololu Olunloyo being the first rector of the Polytechnic Ibadan.鈥 However, there are lots of reasons why we appeal to the Governor to reconsider and reverse the decision as its negative impact on the institution outweighs the positive impact.
鈥 The Polytechnic, Ibadan is known globally for its impactful technical knowledge and meaningful impact on students and graduates in and outside Nigeria.鈥 It has the structural, intellectual, human resources and capacity to become a University. The renowned citadel of technological innovations has produced great icons over the years.
鈥 The image of this institution must be preserved by the Governor and all stakeholders as enshrined in the name it bears.
鈥 The difficulty of acceptability by foreign institutions of the students who may wants to further their education abroad should be considered significantly as it will be a set back the majority of such graduates.鈥 The Governor is therefore humbly urged to invest more in infrastructure and human capital development in the institution to be able to compete favourably amongst other institutions in the country rather than the unnecessary focus on name change. The problem of underfunding and lack of support for research and innovation should also be addressed by the Governor鈥.
The statement noted that the proposed name in the global age of artificial intelligence will make the institution look like an elementary school recently established.
The group argued that the Governor has not highlighted and mentioned the significant contributions of late Olunloyo to the institution to warrant the renaming of the institution after him.鈥 It is one record that the impact of the late Dr Olunloyo is arguably one of the worst and the institution experienced stunted growth under the late Governor. So we cannot but wonder the real justification for the change of the name of the institution after Dr. Olunloyo.
鈥 To buttress the point, Governor Seyi Makinde has not highlighted and mentioned the significant contributions of late Olunloyo to the institution to warrant the re-naming of the institution after him. Governor Seyi Makinde will have uphill task convincing the students, parents, alumnis and stakeholders on why the institution should be renamed after late Olunloyo.
鈥 In the light of the above, we urge the Oyo State House of Assembly as the true representatives of the people to reject any attempt by the Governor to ridicule the great institution by renaming same after late Olunloyo.
鈥 We plead with the Governor not to undermine the core values of the great Polytechnic Ibadan to score cheap political goals鈥 The statement added