Sanwo-Olu Rewards LASU’s 2 Best Graduating Students With N20m Each

Lagos State governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Wednesday rewarded the two best graduating students of Lagos State University, LASU, Ojo Campus, with N20 million each, urging the graduands to distinguish themselves in their various disciplines as they leave the school.

Sanwo-Olu, who spoke as the visiting school at the graduation ceremonies of the 20,604 graduands, which included Bachelor’s degree holders, Master’s degree holders, diploma holders, and doctorate holders, told them to exhibit competence and good character, and to be part of the change for a better society that Nigerians clamour for.

The beneficiaries of Governor Sanwo-Olu’s rewards are Ayilara Lawal Olawale of the Department of Project Management, who emerged as the overall best graduating student for the 2024/2025 academic session with a Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of 4.96, and Adebanjo Samuel Oluolamide of the Department of Aerospace Engineering, who finished as the overall best graduating student for the 2025/2026 academic session with a CGPA of 4.97.

Sanwo-Olu, who reminded his audience that the convocation would be the last convocation he would be presiding over as a visitor to the school, as his tenure as the governor expires on 29 May 2027, said, “This is my final charge, the last instruction I will ever give from this podium as your Visitor. Keep it simple so that you carry it for life. Go, and be the proof. Be the proof that a state university can out-think, out-work and out-build any institution anywhere in the world.

“Be the proof that the daughter of a market woman can run a boardroom, and the son of a bus conductor can design an aircraft. The world you are entering will not ask where you graduated before it asks what you can do. Answer with your competence, your character and your courage — and the world will learn to respect your gown.

“Serve something larger than yourself. Degrees open doors, but only service builds a name. And wherever the tide of life carries you — Lekki or London, Ajah or Atlanta — carry Lagos with you. Remain worthy ambassadors of this University, this state, and this nation. You are not just leaving with a certificate. You are leaving with a covenant,” He told the graduates.

In her welcome address, which also serves as her valedictory speech, the University Vice Chancellor, Prof. Ibiyemi Olatunji-Bello, whose tenure comes to an end next month, September, said she inherited a university of strong potential and will be leaving behind a university of providence and excellence.

Olatunji-Bello said that when she was appointed vice Chancellor in 2021, she set six strategic goals, noting that she is grateful she was able to achieve them.

She enumerated the goals as academic excellence, a research and innovation position, digital transformation of LASU, and digital infrastructure, which enabled her administration to execute 50 projects and achieve full residential status for the institution.

Professor Olatunji-Bello said part of her goal was to increase the Institution’s Internally Generated Revenue, which she achieved by raising it from N3 billion in 2021 to N13 billion by 2025.

The outgoing Vice Chancellor stated that her administration also prioritised the welfare of the institution’s staff and students by clearing over 2,000 staff promotions that had not been implemented before she came on board.

Professor Olatunji-Bello appreciated Governor Sanwo-Olu for his unwavering support for the institution, which made it easier for her to accomplish the goals she set.

The Vice Chancellor, who went emotional when appreciating the governor, said, “I appreciate the governor for giving us the support and never wavers in his belief that LASU may become what it is today,” she said.

The institution also awarded honorary doctorates to Mr Akin Kekere Ekun, the husband of the Chief Judge of Nigeria, Kudirat Kekere Ekun, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, and Mrs Harriet-Ann Omobola (Bola) Adesola.