THE IMPACT OF THE FCE ON IWOLAND PROSPERITY

The path to growth is always an endless journey featuring successes and failures,  achievements and retrial, influenced by relative discovery in the sciences and the arts, and commercial management.  At the foundation of this is the common fact that any community that is interested in a growth the future generation will treasure,  then it should give appreciable values to education.

It will suit the exposition of the topic to firstly narrate what Iwoland entails. Iwoland, in context,  is Yoruba kingdom located in the State of Osun and comprising three Local Government Areas viz Ayedire; Iwo and Ola-Oluwa made up about 400,000 aggregate of population.  Iwoland is predominantly Muslims with a vast majority as civil servants,  clerics or farmers accordingly. Iwoland happens to be the largest in Osun state and the 1931 5th largest in Nigeria led by Ibadan,  Kano,  Lagos and Ogbomoso in order. Iwoland is poorly industrialized, poorly commercialized, poorly infrastructured relative to the contemporaries stated. Academically,  Iwoland is blessed with a huge number of students dispersed in institutions across Nigeria and diaspora with a vast number of academician who have rose to several credits in the educational line ranging from the youngest professors in the institution to handful of Vice-chancellors in State-owned,  FG-owned and institutions overseas.

On Tuesday, 29th of October,  2019, A Bill for an Act on Establishment of Federal College of Education,  Iwo in Osun State was firstly read at the green chamber by the representative of the the Federal Constituency,  Hon Yinusa Akintola Amobi and since then,  several other bodies have been in pursuit of the cause especially in tandem with the plan of the Federal Government to establish 6 FCE across the geopolitical zones. Until one was ceded to Osun,  and amidst all struggles led by the Monarchs of the land,  her representatives, others at the corridor of power and pressure groups,  Iwo came with the Federal College of Education as indicated in the letter referenced SAF.36/S.626/I/23 addressed to His Excellency,  Governor of the State of Osun on 16th of April by Federal Ministry of Education.

As expected, the majority dwellers of the community could not hide their joy at this laudable feat as it is seen as a key to better fortune and community growth through enlightenment,  employment and commercial values.  Many have expressed their insecurity too as they observe the community suffers a threat to her moral,  religious and cultural values that may be influenced by outsiders.  The analysis of the opportunities and threats -which defines impact- of the FCE on Iwoland prosperity includes little or no latent fact,  all of it is conspicuous. It is therefore necessary to look at the advantages and disadvantages. The bird is said not to be brilliant at flying with an eye.  However,  while reviewing the impact,  it is necessary to consider the contemporary issues hand in hand to which some of it had been highlighted in the preceding paragraph and others might include the particular siting of the institution in the kingdom.

Quickly narrowing down,  I will want to state some of the positive impact of the FCE on the hosting community. Like many agreed too,  it's an avenue for more educational exploitation for the people of Iwoland as they can easily fetch the education at a trek away from their homes. Many others who seek to combine qualifications in colleges of education with other higher institutes can cheaply afford that at their country homes. In some areas,  schools or patriots often avail scholarship or subsidized tuition for indigents or populace of the hosting community. Other conventional places, preference is given to indigenes of the hosting community in terms of admission sharing. This access to education on an affordable resource platform will be a great giant step to Iwoland educational growth.

Although,  critics have said that preference of students for colleges of education has reduced greatly over the recent years and Iwoland indigenes aren't known to be academically lazy,  hence net output impact on educational prosperity of Iwoland may not be as great as publicly emphasized.

Also, the job opportunity to be opened by this Federal College of Education to people of Iwoland cannot be overemphasized ranging from high officers work as Institution Provost, other administrative officer and Lecturers in various levels to labour work as cleaner and even petty sellers may have their market. Contractors are also open to their time bounding opportunities while the entrepreneural ones among the youth are most exposed to doors of non-stop opportunities. The job that could be offer by such citadel would obviously shifted the job focus of the people which are Civil servants and farming majorly to other entrepreneural innovative or add to their occupational life style. This and other to be stated in this content will bring the constituency to a greater commercial values,  close enough to match with it's old contemporaries of Ogbomoso and Ibadan. 

Generally,  consumer comes with producer and a positive communication between these two will effect a good means of exchange. In essence,  if the proposed Federal College of Education is set to track and the students are turning in,  then the institution would have bred enough consumer to cause industrialization especially for commonly consumed resources and this may in terms breed infrastructure for the community.  Verily,  such establishment is a great bargaining power for the community to bring investors into the community and to seek government interventions on bothering affairs.  All this in place,  how then does a Federal College of Education not have an impact in the prosperity of the land?

Likewise,  Iwoland is a kingdom that prides itself on high ancestry lineage, cultural heritage, religious transcendence and other cherished traditional values. Illustration of such values will be obvious in the flamboyant monarchs of the land especially the Oluwo of Iwoland and also the common epithet of Iwo Ilu Alfa (Iwo, the home of Islamic clerics) or Iwo Olodu Oba (Iwo that knows the Oracle divination for River Oba) and a host of others.  You may meet the Parrot bird in several junctions across their street which is a symbol of their ancestral belief. Advocates had claimed that the Federal College will be an opportunity for the kingdom to share with the nation what it has got in traditional values and remnants of its ancestral wares. In the believe that federal school will be attended by many across the country,  they can equally stopped by in their learning and take some lessons to their various homes about the home of the first female king in Yoruba kingdom. They can take home from the Iwo morals; history and religion; and the land will earn a national recognition. This definitely will be prosperous for the land and advantageous to the indigenes of the land. 

On the other hand,  it can also expose the community to foreign characters.  Verily the  positive side of the character will be earned but the negative behavior cannot be left uncultivated.  This may slow down the jog of the land towards it's prosperity and it may also introduce new dimension which are unfamiliar to the community before the establishment.

Amidst the character it may bring is the activeness and dedication to community development,  humanitarian service and patriotism.  With higher institution comes a number of clubs and organization, local and international,  for personal development and community development and other purposes relevant,  the only field for operation of all these platforms is nothing but the hosting community. If so,  then there is hope of quick approach to Iwoland prosperity. Afterall,  prosperity means growth. It is gradual,  it occurs in step. 

Furthermore, one other impact relevant to Iwoland prosperity neccesary to be mentioned before the conclusion of this article is the harmonization of AYIWOLA.  Earlier,  I stated that Iwoland has been politically splitted into three local government areas.  Having a Federal institution in the heart of it will serve hopefully as a rallying point for the three local government areas as labour force and economic interest of the trio will be towards same. Hence,  a need to harmonize.

Although, others opined the future generational crisis that may set-in on the location of the Federal College of education if other ones who are willing to have the institute cited on their lands or at proximity to favour their commercial values are aggrieved or if other degenerative issues arises.  However,  like the Vice-President Prof. Yemi Osibanjo said,  today is the best day possible.  Tomorrow shall cater for itself when the opportunity at hand of Iwoland has already contributed to her prosperity.

Lastly,  other impacts that may be relevant to the growth of the land includes exposure, prestige of the land and exchange of lifestyle.

Many has opined their view including the students union and the market union,  traditional ruler, monks and political leaders to establish the essence of this Federal College of Education to Iwoland's prosperity. Therefore,  I maintain the stand that the newly approved Federal College of Education will be an horse ride in the path of Iwoland prosperity.

Written by:

Ridhwan Opeyemi Abdulghaniy

Akindin's Compound,  Iwo LG,  Osun State. 

+234(0)9033614285

abdulghee@gmail.com