Eighty-two-year-old George Ogungbola in this interview with KAYODE FALADE speaks about life as an academic, politician and administrator
When were you born?
I was born on September 11, 1932 at Ajegunle village, now in Ogun State.
When and where did you start schooling?
I started schooling at Abalabi Central School, Ewekoro Local Government Area of Ogun State in 1941. Then I moved to Owu African Central School. I am an Owu man. My parents were Owu but my maternal grandmother was from Ibadan. I finished that school in 1949. I came first. People used to call me ‘Ever-first George.’ But I told then it was not totally correct. There were other people who were as brilliant. I gained admission into Baptist Boys High School but my father refused to send me there. He said I should go and teach. Then, I was about 17 years old. And I was about the youngest in my class. Thus, I lost that opportunity. I started teaching in 1950. I taught for two years. Then my church established the African Church Teachers College at Ifako-Agege, Lagos. That was 1952. I was among the first set of students in the college. It was a two-year course. It was a collection of brilliant teachers and I was the youngest among them too. We were 32 including my former teacher at Abalabi. It was Grade III Teachers College. When I finished I was posted to the school I first taught – Yobo African Church School as the headmaster.
Headmaster?
Yes, headmaster. Most teachers then were Standard Six certificate holders. But they were very good. The Teachers’ Grade III and Grade II certificates were very high ones then. I was a headmaster for one year when the government approved a Grade II certificate programme for the same college in 1955. I wouldn’t have gone for the course but I learnt that some of my mates were returning for the programme. I quickly made up my mind to attend as I didn’t want my mates to become my seniors after the completion of the programme. It was also a two-year course: 1955 and 1956. That class too was a collection of brilliant teachers. Many of them had done their Grade III course many years back but had no opportunity to further their studies. We were 19. In my class, there was Dr. S. O. Jiboku who was the Provost of the College of Education, Ijebu Ode, then one Abolade, now a lawyer at Ikirun, Osun State. The class was very good but three of us outshone them all. In the last three exams we did, I came first. At the end of the programme in 1956, I was retained in the college as a teacher. Jiboku was posted to African Church Grammar School, Abeokuta and Abolade was posted to the African Church Teachers College at Ikirun, while others were posted to primary schools all over the place. In those days before one wrote GCE, one must do the qualifying test. Hence, we did the qualifying test in 1956 and in 1957, I put in for the exams and registered six subjects including Mathematics which I learnt for one and a half years. Abolade and I took the exam in May/June 1957 and passed. In January 1959, I sat for the A/Level GCE in Economics, Peace Constitution and History and I passed. I never thought of seeking admission into the university. If I gained admission, who would sponsor me? Because of this, I was only looking for a job. Eventually, I got a job in Ibadan as Executive Officer, Western Region Government. I was posted to the Ministry of Education. When I was teaching at the Teachers Training College my pay was 16 pounds but as Executive Officer, I was paid 37. Ona Soleye attended BBHS and a teacher’s college at Iwo. He came to the secretariat one day and passed through my office and saw me. He shouted, “George, what are you doing here?” I responded in a similar way, “Segun, what do you want here?” He told me he came for a Federal Government scholarship form. That was my first time of hearing about it. And I was a worker in the ministry in charge. Imagine that! So I went with him and collected the form too. I filled the form and submitted. At the end of the day I was awarded scholarship but he was not. However, he also gained admission into a university. I entered the University of Ibadan in 1961 at the age of 29, already married with three children and driving a car.
Did you buy the car or was it given to you?
I bought it. In 1960, there was a general election which was won by Chief S. L. Akintola. They appointed those you call special assistants now. Then, they were called private secretaries. They were appointed from the Executive Officer cadre not just politicians as you have now. I too was appointed as a private secretary to a minister. He was S. A. Tinubu from Iresi. He was minister for local government. They are now known as commissioners. I served there for one year. I was just finishing when I got admission into the University of Ibadan. Then, admission was only through A/Levels and it was a three-year programme. Exams were only conducted at the end of the second and third years. But some Americans came saying we should do exams at the end of our first year. I usually have a monthly bout of malaria. Even now I just recovered. It has always been so. To guard against this I took a drug I usually took. The drug knocked me out. I also had problems with my fountain pen. But it never occurred to me to report to the authorities. When the results were released, 12 of us failed. Six people were sent away and I was among the other six asked to repeat the class. I was 30 years old. My mates were mostly 23 or 24 years old. I had a family at home. I took courage and went home to tell my wife. The following year, I started again with fresh students. At the end of the second year, I beat them all. There was a scholarship for the best student in the faculty and we had three departments: Economics, Geography and Sociology. There was one prize, I won it. There was also the prize for the best student in the Economics department (the Robertson James’ prize and medal). I won it too. In our graduating year, I also won the prize for the best graduating student. This qualified me for a university scholarship.
When I entered university, my best result was in History. I didn’t want to study History because I didn’t want to teach. This was not because of the money but people didn’t give respect to teachers. But a winner of the post graduate scholarship must teach at the university. So, I accepted being a teacher heartily. I did my course at the University of Ibadan. After the completion of my programme, I was teaching at the department of Economics when Professor Sam Aluko came in from the University of Ife which had just moved to its permanent site. He was recruiting for the department of Economics which he headed. A gentleman, Mr. Deji Ojo who was two years my junior and I were together in Professor Ojetunji Aboyade’s room when Aluko came in and asked for two good people. Aboyade turned to Ojo and said, “Deji, do you want to go?” he quickly answered in the affirmative. Of course, he had just graduated and he had no job. I told them I wanted to go too.
Why did you decide to leave an established UI for Ife that was just starting?
People usually talk about sexual harassment. It is not always the male harassing the female, females harass males too. There was something they called October Rush at that time in the universities. The ladies that came in were mature. They were in their early 20’s. By the time they graduate, they would be 25, 26 and probably not too eligible for marriage. If they didn’t get husband before they left university, it could be difficult. Then a set of students came in from a female institution which I won’t mention. Very brilliant girls, they were. They were about eight. Most girls at that institution were children of well-to-do people and I was assigned to take them tutorial classes. They divided them into groups and I was handling three or four groups. Teaching to me is a God-given talent. Without being immodest, I can say I know how to teach. Ask my former students. And I enjoyed it too. When we started, my class was about 14. Then it rose to 16, 18, 20, (boys and girls). As a research officer, I had a room to myself. Then these young ladies started bombarding me with questions and all sorts but I suspected what they wanted. They didn’t know I was married. I was 34 but because of my looks, they thought I was probably 26 or 27. One day I told one of them that I was married. She went to their hostel and told her colleagues who came to say I was lying, that I was not married. About two weeks later, I told them in the class that I even had four children. Where was my wife? Then, my wife was in England studying. She left for England in 1963. It was my mother who was taking care of the children. I told them my wife left for England three years ago. They did not believe. I knew if I continued there, things could get dangerous and I didn’t want to do anything bad to any girl. I didn’t want to have anything to do with any of my student. Throughout my 18-year stay at the university I never slept with any girl either in my department or outside it; even when my wife was in England. I concluded that, one day, devil might come in, so I took the opportunity and left.
How did you meet your wife?
I got married in 1958. When I was at Ifako for my Grade III course in 1952, the person I married was teaching in one of the neighbouring primary schools called Waasinmi Alaafia very near my village, Ajegunle. I had a friend that was also teaching at the same school. I met her while visiting my friend. Initially, we didn’t say we wanted to marry but we got married in 1958.
How did you get into Academic Staff of Universities Union?
Then it was not ASUU. In 1971, I went to the University of Manchester on leave of absence. It was when I came back that I joined the Association of University Teachers at the local level and at the national level, National Association of University Teachers which metamorphosed into ASUU.
I didn’t get my PhD, I was at Manchester for masters. I was one of the three selected in the class to proceed to PhD. I finished the course work and was about wrapping up my thesis when my time expired. I had to return to Nigeria. What I should have done was to complete the remaining two chapters; send to my supervisor and go back three months after to graduate. But it was then that I joined AUT and I was so involved in it. I also know that if you are sound, with a masters degree, you can still become a professor. Even in the UK most of the professors are not PhD holders. It is the research you do that qualifies you for professorship. But I did not go back to Manchester.
So, AUT denied you ….
(Cuts in with laughter) No, I denied myself. But it didn’t stop my promotion. I was doing my research very well. I was the coordinator of the Small Scale Industrial Unit. I was promoted senior lecturer in 1976. I should have gotten it in 1975 but by then we trade unionists had entered the bad book of the authorities. If I had not joined partisan politics and got a political appointment, I would have gotten my professorship probably in 1980.
How did you become so active in unionism?
I wasn’t so active initially. There was a time we were to appoint an assistant secretary and I nominated one man who was very outspoken. But he refused. After no one wanted to take it up, the house said since my voice was the loudest while nominating the man who rejected the nomination, I should take it up. That was how I became the assistant secretary of the local branch. Again, our chairman then, whose name I have forgotten now, was looking for the post of a professor and if he was too active in AUT, he won’t get it. One day, we put up a motion which was against the authorities and he opposed it. We sacked him that very day. I was the one who walked him out of the hall. That day they said they should appoint a deputy chairman. Again, they chorused my name. I stepped in.
How did you go into politics?
I was used to politics before. When I was teaching in Ifako, my landlord was an Action Group stalwart. He was Ositelu, Principal Organising Secretary of AG. Then, they were planning the 1959 general elections. He asked me to leave my teaching job to be the organising secretary. That was 25 pounds a month as against the 16, I was earning as a teacher. They would also give me a Volkswagen car and allowances. Then I was preparing for my A/Levels. I weighed the two options and concluded against it. We used to go together on his numerous political trips around the region anytime he was at home. In the 1959 elections, I was the polling agent for the AG at Tabontabon, Agege. Also as a private secretary to the minister I got to be aware of a lot of things. We were also going on trips together. Then we were practising the parliamentary system. The executive was picked from the legislatures. Anytime the House met, most of the private secretaries would be there in case their principals wanted to send them on errands. So, we saw what was happening. The memos which they would discuss at the Exco would first come to the private secretaries. Some of us who were interested in what was happening would read before passing them on to our ministers. When the crisis of the First Republic which led to the termination of government started, I was already at the University of Ife.
How was life then in your youth compared with what obtains now?
Life was beautiful then. We were working hard and we did not chase money. When I was at Ife, no student dared come to my class late. Once you knew I was in the classroom, you dared not come in and we were all friends. Once the class ended, they would come to my office, both boys and girls, to play. It was so too at Ago-Iwoye. We worked hard. Ife was good too. The facilities were there. There were quarters. We had our power and water plant. If you wanted to buy anything, the agric farm was there. The libraries and bookshop were also there. The students were happy and the classrooms were well equipped. You had no reason to leave. In fact, I was a bit reluctant to take up a political appointment under Chief Olabisi Onabanjo until I was urged to do so by my colleagues.
What was the relationship between students’ leaders then and ASUU?
It was cordial. They were our students and we had been students once. We also carried them along in whatever we wanted to do and vice versa.
What is your relationship with former President Olusegun Obasanjo?
He is my cousin. We are from the same Olusomi Compound in Totoro, Abeokuta. His grandfather’s house is behind ours. If you are from Abeokuta, you must also have a village. Obasanjo’s family farm is Ibogun while ours is Ajegunle. We all worship Oosa Osoosi. Initially, we were not close but we all know we are from the same compound. We met first when I visited him as an official of ASUU in 1977.
There is this controversy about Obasanjo’s age? What is actually his age?
But he has said he does not know it, why are you asking me?
Who is older?
Whatever his age is, I am older by three and a half years.
How are you so sure?
There are other people who are older than him in their compound who know. One of them is Olu Adebayo, the husband of the former INEC Resident Commissioner in Ekiti State. We all come from the same compound. He was still in lower primary school when we finished.
What type of child was Obasanjo?
He was stubborn.
What is your favourite food?
My favourite food is Eba. I love to take it with any type of soup.
How many children do you have?
God has blessed me with 12 children.
Do you engage in exercise?
I used to but I have since stopped when my sight became worse. I have glaucoma.
What informed the establishment of a state owned university by the administration of Chief Olabisi Onabanjo where you served as commissioner for education?
When we came into government we established 230 secondary schools in a year. We furnished them and supplied them with books. We discovered that many of our children who were qualified for university admission were still at home. Hence, we took a decision to establish our own university which would be multi-campus because of the rural integration scheme of our party, the Unity Party of Nigeria.
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