By 
Safiu Kehinde
Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu has finally fulfilled his 176 days-old promise made to the students of Lagos State University of Science and Technology (LASUSTECH) as he donated four high capacity buses to the institution last week Friday.
This came a few weeks after the students, mobilized by Lagos State Polytechnic Students Union Government (LASPOSUG), attended the Mega Rally organized by the Special Adviser to the Governor, Hon. Tokunbo Wahabat at Onikan Stadium in support of Sanwo-Olu’s second term ambition.
Reacting to the development, LASUSTECH Public Relations Officer, Dr. Olanrewaju Kuye traced the donation back to the promises made by the governor late last year as he heaped praises on governor’s fulfilment of his promise, describing him as a ‘talk and do’ governor.
“If you recall sometimes, the Governor was here to inspect a project-the ongoing administrative block. He did promise that day that he would do. Our governor is talk and do. Whatever he says, no matter the timeframe, he will surely do. He did promised two buses, now we have four. That is a plus for us,” Dr. Kuye said.
On the contrary, LASPOTECH Students Union Government Public Relations Officer, Hassan Nurudeen appeared uncertain as to whether the donation was borne out of the governor’s promise during his August visit to the institution or the outcome of the rally attended by the students.
“I cannot specifically say it was that promise made earlier or because of the recent programme that was held which included all the state-owned institutions. I can’t say in particular.
“All I know is that at one point, he promised to give out two buses to the institution and we keep following it up. We kept asking them anytime we have the privilege to meet with anyone who we know is influential to that office. We always use that opportunity. They are interwoven one way or the other,” he said.
As disclosed by the SUG PRO, Sanwo-Olu had made fresh promise of bus donation to institutions present at the mega rally orchestrated as part of his second term campaign.
Also reacting to the development were students of the institution, with some labelling it as part of the governor’s campaign plan while others commend the gesture.
For Aderibigbe Aishat, a 100 level Chemistry student, the donation was supposed to have been done long before the university academic session commenced.
“Let me say I’m happy on one hand and not happy on the other. Why didn’t they do it before the 100 level students resume? Well, like I said, I’m happy, but why not before the school was even converted into University?” she asked.
Aishat, however, called for the integration of the Students Union Government into the university system, stressing the need for students’ activism on campus.
“It is compulsory, and we must have it so they can fight for the rest of us. It is a must we have it.” She added.
On his part, Johnson Benjamin, a part-time student of Lagos State Polytechnic, perceived the donation as campaign-oriented, stressing that the Students Union Government has been pestering the state government on number of things beyond shuttle buses.
“I guess the bus is just for campaign and election stuff. That is why they bought it. If not, they would have done something better than this because SUG has been pressurizing them on different things, not just the bus,” he said.
Similarly, another 100 level student of Quantity Survey, Ololade Taofeek, felt the move was made in an attempt to woo students for their support ahead of the forthcoming election.
“Without being sentimental, I’ll like to say that the government did this because of the upcoming election. They feel that with this, the students will be anxious and excited to vote for them so they can do more,” he said.
In contrast, Falae Gbolahan, another 100 level Mass Communication student, debunked the claim that the donation was election-driven.
“Generally, everybody will think because it is for the election. I think he (the governor) is just concerned with the students’ well-being. Since it is of students’ benefit, why won’t they do it?,” he said.
Meanwhile, it could be recalled that Sanwo-Olu had in August, last year, visited the institution to inspect the ongoing administrative block with the Students Union Government led by former president, Balogun Aderemi, welcoming the governor to the campus.
The Union President had made four requests on behalf of the students which include provision of bus, renovation of the SUG building, construction of Sporting Complex, and addressing the speculations surrounding the increment of school fees ahead of the 2022/2023 academic session.
According to LaspoWatch, an online publication by the institution’s Press Club, the governor debunked the claim of school fees increment while promising to fulfil the three other requests.
“To your President’s request. He has asked for four things. Because I am a Daddy who also listens, I will take each of them quickly.
“The first one is that he says you need a means of transportation from Isolo Campus to the Ikorodu campus. Because I am here today, I will make available two big buses for you. Before the end of September, your buses will be here.
“The second request is that you want me to renovate your Students Union Building. If you go to LASU, they have the biggest Union building in this country. So be patient with me. We will first renovate the current one, but we will take time to come and build a purpose building for your students’ union.
“We are concurrently building eight mini stadia in Lagos. There is one we are building in Igbogbo. But because I am inside your campus, I will work with the office of SDG, and we will see how we can, very quickly, bring a small Sporting Complex into your University,” Sanwo-Olu had said.
The governor, however, added to the request as he promised to make available, free WiFi on the campus.
