Former Minister of Education, Prof. Tunde Adeniran; former Minister of Agriculture and Water Resources, Bamidele Dada, among other dons, at the weekend, urged the Federal Government and other relevant stakeholders to give room for intellectuals with good records and capacity to impact the development and progress of the country.
The scholars made the call during the public presentation of a book, “The Unending Quest for Reform: An Intellectual Memoir,” authored by Prof. Tunji Olaopa, a retired federal Permanent Secretary at the University of Ibadan (UI).
Other scholars present at the book presentation described the thoughts projected by Olaopa in the book as being critical and necessary to help the country achieve reformation, especially in public service.
In his remarks, Adeniran said: “Nigeria is blessed with many talents. We have very few individuals, among who Olaopa is, who have impacted intellectually but the issue is when will Nigeria recognise them and give them the opportunity to impact their knowledge towards the development of Nigeria?”
Dada said Nigeria needs critical reforms to move forward. He said the author has made some recommendations that could generate valuable results for positive change in the country.
Chairman on the occasion, Prof. Gabriel Ogunmola, said since Olaopa retired from public service in 2015, he had continued to pursue activities that have promoted public policy.
According to Ogunmola, “Since your retirement in 2015 you have pursued activities that have promoted the creation of Ibadan School of Government and Public Policy that has ignited a reassurance of your relevance in the country. This book has documented the roles and impact he has played to ensure a rationale and template for a continued public service reform. Olaopa is a strong believer in the potential of a viable nation, Nigeria. His public service credentials and lifelong dedication to institutional reforms in the public service are sufficient grounds to buttress that belief.”
He added that Olaopa is one member of a generation who refused to walk away and be brain drained but stayed to continue to contribute for the possibility of Nigeria to become a viable nation.
In similar vein, Professors, Simbine, Owoeye described the author as someone whose intellectual capacity and experience in public service and governance are rich enough to build and reform a nation. Specifically, the Pro-Chancellor of Leed University disclosed that Olaopa’s contributions assisted a lot in the establishment of Lead.
In his response, Olaopa said his foray into writing as a former public servant, was specifically aimed to fight a purpose.
Discussion about this post