“Being intelligent is all about being poor; it’s about denials, about knowing how to read in Lagos traffic. It’s about hunger and, most importantly, God. All these things combined are what made me achieve this. My first nine months at NIJ were a tug of war; I survived it, and it made me a better person.”
Sodiq Oyeleke, a student in the Department of English Language at Obafemi Awowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, has a remarkable story. In 2009, while pursuing a National Diploma at the Nigerian Institute of Journalism (NIJ) in Lagos, he worked as a sachet water seller and car washer. Five years later, he became the best graduating student.
Last week, he was the center of attention when his name was announced as the overall best graduating student at the diploma level of the Nigerian Institute of Journalism. The Omupo, Kwara State native, spoke with Sikiru Akinola, a 400-level Political Science student at OAU, about how he didn’t let poverty stop him from succeeding.
After graduating from Longford International School in Ebute Meta, Lagos Mainland, in 2008, all hope of continuing his education seemed dim due to a harsh economic situation. He explained that a parent, who was touched by his speech as head boy during the school’s valedictory service, gave him N5,000. He used the money to set up a business center. However, the business failed when the profits became insufficient to sustain it as he had hoped.
He said, “So in 2009, I went to work with a pure water company as a car boy and loader to distribute to customers. I later quit because a customer treated me like a slave. I cried all night that day and decided to find a new job. I went into teaching, and later, it felt too dull for me because I had no time for my business and the salary was meager. After that, I went into GSM engineering, private tutoring, and other ventures.”
He was learning computer engineering when he was admitted to the Nigerian Institute of Journalism. Again, the fee was too much for him to pay. He had given up on registering when fortune smiled on him. A lady, Agbaje Esther, sacrificed her own journalism career for Sodiq. He said that the lady had gained admission into both the University of Lagos (UNILAG) and NIJ simultaneously. She transferred the school fees she had already paid for NIJ and chose to attend UNILAG, where she had initially almost rejected an admission offer for a degree in Russian Language studies.
“The award came with higher responsibilities; it’s a challenge for me to do more, as this is not the first time I have been awarded. It’s a call to duty, and I always want to justify that I merit the awards,” he said.
On how he achieved the feat, he explained that, “Being intelligent is all about being poor; it’s about denials; it’s about knowing how to read in Lagos traffic. It’s about hunger. Trekking from Ogba to Ojota or sleeping under the Ikeja bridge with touts. All these things combined are what made me achieve this.”
“My first nine months were a tug of war; I survived it, and it made me a better person,” he continued. “I usually go and do ‘Service Boy’ at parties on the weekends and manage the money for one or sometimes two weeks, depending on whether there’s work. Sometimes, I get money by helping people out with their assignments. If I don’t have enough transport fare, I trek home, and on two occasions, I have had to sleep under Ikeja bridge. I eat when there is food and starve when there is none. I see all these as advantages to me because they gave me reasons and opportunities to study well.”
He said he would not forget the day a lecturer jokingly embarrassed him in class. The lecturer had asked Sodiq’s classmates to contribute money for him to buy clothes, “saying that I didn’t wear good outfits.” He also narrated how a friend, Wasilat Kabiawu, used to bring him food from her parents’ house and how he would hide in the toilet to read so his friends wouldn’t disturb him.
He said it became tough when he was appointed president of the Muslim students association in the school. “We prayed in a mosque that had no roof. The whole experience I gained during my internship at Punch Newspapers is also a cool one to always remember. Some PUNCH staff gave me money to resume at OAU.”
When the reporter asked where his parents were when all this was happening, he said that his parents are alive but “they are just not capable. I am sure they would have done something if they were capable. At least, I can be proud of my mother. She really tried to see me through secondary education.”
Fortunately, after graduating from NIJ, he gained admission to study English Language at OAU. “That is what I am battling with now. I would have loved to continue my Higher National Diploma at NIJ, but for the lack of funds, but I thank God I didn’t anyway, because it is just too nice to be in OAU. Just as no school can beat NIJ in Mass Communication, OAU is outstanding among other universities in Nigeria.”
Regarding his future aspirations, he said God would decide for him. His dream is simply to be successful in life.
When he was asked to advise the youth, he said: “Why advise youths and not the government? How do you want the youths to create jobs in these challenging situations we find ourselves in this country? Lack of adequate electricity supply killed my business center. Creating jobs is technical and not political. Let the government perform their duty, and you will be surprised to see that Nigerian youths are more vibrant than their counterparts in any part of the world.”
By Sikiru Akinola – https://acjoau.com/i-slept-at-ikeja-under-bridge-to-emerge-nij-best-student-sodiq-oyeleke/
