- Otunba TJ Abass congratulates Prof. Onibon on his appointment as Pioneer Rector.
- Abass hails the appointment as a proud moment for Epe.
- Onibon’s appointment follows his memoir launch just eight days earlier.
The Aremo of Epe and Publisher of EKO HOT BLOG, Otunba TJ Abass, has congratulated Professor Nosiru Olajide Onibon on his appointment as Pioneer Rector of Bola Ahmed Tinubu Federal Polytechnic, Abuja, describing it as a proud moment for Epe and a recognition of decades of dedicated service to Nigerian education.
EKO HOT BLOG reports that Otunba Abass, who is one of Epe’s most prominent public figures, said the appointment was well-deserved, noting that Professor Onibon’s trajectory — from classroom lecturer to institutional reformer to federal appointee — reflects the kind of quiet, consistent excellence that the Epe community has always produced.
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He expressed confidence that Professor Onibon would bring the same discipline and vision to the federal polytechnic that he demonstrated during his tenures at the Michael Otedola College of Primary Education (MOCPED) and the Lagos State University of Education (LASUED), and urged him to use the new platform to open doors for young Nigerians.
“I have no doubt that Prof. Onibon’s tenure as rector would be as transformative as his time in other institutions are,” Abbas said.
The Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, presented the certificate of appointment to Onibon on Wednesday, March 11, coming just eight days after he launched his memoir, Audacity to Lead and Courage to Serve, at a ceremony attended by traditional rulers, politicians, and academics.
Born in Epe, Lagos State, Professor Onibon attained the rank of full Professor in July 2025, the latest milestone in a career built on academic rigour and institutional leadership.
He first assumed leadership at MOCPED as Acting Provost in January 2018, before being confirmed as its 5th substantive Provost in January 2019.
He inherited an institution in serious difficulty: unprocessed financial records, unremitted pension deductions, and fractured staff morale. Over nearly six years, he stabilised the institution and championed its conversion into a university. That effort succeeded in February 2022, when the Lagos State Government transformed MOCPED into LASUED. Onibon was appointed its sole Acting Deputy Vice-Chancellor, a role he held until mid-2023.
At LASUED, he chaired several critical foundational committees, including the NUC Resource Verification Committee that secured approval for the university’s academic programmes, and the Central Admission Committee that admitted its first set of students.
Academically, he holds degrees from Lagos State University, the University of Ibadan, and the International Islamic University, Malaysia, where he earned his doctorate in Arabic Language Studies. He is a fellow of the American National African Language Resource Centre and a lecturer in the Department of Foreign Languages at Lagos State University, Ojo.
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His appointment as Pioneer Rector has drawn congratulations from across the political, religious, and academic spectrum, with Rep. Wale Raji of Epe Federal Constituency calling it a case of a round peg in a round hole.
Click to watch the video of the week below:
