Seven years after an unwanted pregnancy forced her to
drop out of the University of Ilorin, Aishat Farooq
emerges the best graduating student of the Bells
University of Technology, Ota, Ogun State, reports
Temitayo Famutimi
When Aishat Farooq gained admission into the University
of Ilorin at 15, to study Zoology, little did she know that
she was not going to be an alumnus of the institution.
That was in 2003.
Despite the fact that she was a high flyer in her first two
years in UNILORIN, the now 25-year-old indigene of Ilorin
West-Local Government Area of Kwara State got
distracted along the line. She played the campus love
game and got a shocking result: she got pregnant.
It was in 2006 and in her third year. She was pregnant for
a fellow student whom she had been dating. She was
disappointed in herself and thought the whole world was
crashing on her. Yet, she vowed not to terminate the
pregnancy.
Although she wanted to continue her studies in the
university, she became disillusioned and dropped out at
18. She sought consolation in trading.
But her father, Mr. Shehu Farooq, who believed that his
daughter’s academic prowess should not be wasted, was
determined to get her back on the academic track.
Today, Aishat has a different story to tell. On Saturday,
she stood tall among her peers at the 5th convocation
ceremony of Bells University, Ota, Ogun State, where she
emerged the overall best graduating student with a
Cumulative Grade Point Average of 4.93.
“The rebel in me won,” she declared while giving the
valedictory address on behalf of the 208 graduating
students of the university.
“I hope my story will inspire at least one person to
change his or her circumstance. I was pregnant at 18 and
by 19 I was already a mother. I had disappointed my
father who believed so much in me. He had such big
dreams for me and feared the dreams would become
unfulfilled,” she added.
Breaking the news of the pregnancy to her father, who
was at the time based in the northern part of the country,
was not easy. Aishat’s mother, Fatima, who stayed in
Lagos with the family, did not break the “sad news” to
the man until the lady was almost due. The mum feared
her husband would be too angry.
Fatima narrated to our correspondent, “Looking back, we
knew her to be very brilliant. But all of a sudden she got
pregnant. Though her father and I were always discussing
on the telephone, I hid it from him. Whenever he said he
would be coming to Lagos to visit us, I would quickly
chip it in that I would like to be the one to visit. So, I
ensured I was the one always visiting him.
“That was how I managed the situation until the
pregnancy was eight months. But even when we broke
the news to him, he felt really bad. Although there was
nothing he could do, he couldn’t go out for three days.”
Aishat studied Business Administration with specialisation
in Human Resources Management, and received the Vice-
Chancellor’s Prize for the Overall Best Graduating Student
with a cash reward of N50,000 and a plaque. She also
won the College of Management Sciences Prize and
Department of Business Administration Prize for the Best
Graduating Student.
Speaking with our correspondent after she received the
awards, Aishat, whose face beamed with smiles,
expressed gratitude to her dad for not losing hope in her
during her trying time.
She noted that the popularly-held notion that the child
that goes astray belongs to the mother, while the good
ones belong to the father, was not applicable in her
situation as her father did not give up on her.
Asked why her dad had so much hoped in her, she stated
that her history of academic excellence from childhood
right to the university was a major driving force.
Aishat, who attended Nazareth Nursery and Primary
School, Lagos; Penny International College, Lagos and
Model Secondary School, Maitama, Abuja, said she
bagged several academic awards while growing up and
noted that she secured admission to UNILORIN the same
year she completed her secondary education.
She noted, “I did exceptionally well and bagged awards in
the schools I attended. I had the overall best result at the
Senior Secondary School Certificate level at Model
Secondary School, Maitama, Abuja. In fact in UNILORIN, I
was on the first class grade in my first year but in 200
Level, I dropped to second class upper division because I
had already started getting distracted by the boys.
“It just happened that things turned out the way it did.
But here I am, a product of God’s unending mercies,
unconditional love and grace – all coupled with the faith
my dad had in me and my fierce determination.
“I’m a goal getter. I push myself hard. Even here
(BELLSTECH) in spite of being a mother, I was pushing
for the best despite the challenges. I wanted to make my
dad proud again. Once you are determined, nothing is
impossible. Nothing can stop you.”
She said her decision to study Business Administration as
against the sciences, which she was studying in
UNILORIN, was informed by her two-year experience in
the world of business after she dropped out of university.
She explained that incessant strikes by the Academic
Staff Union of Universities, however, informed her
decision to attend a private university. “Age was no
longer on my side and I wanted to do it fast. And my dad
could afford it because he was a businessman,” she
added.
Asked if she was involved in any relationship at the Bells,
she explained that she was a popular “snob” on campus
because the majority of male students were younger than
her. Besides, she did not want to get distracted or
disappoint her parents and herself again.
Aishat, who has been posted to Lagos State to observe
the mandatory National Youth Service Corps scheme,
said, “If you ask around you will be told that I was a
snob. My favourite spot was my room. I rarely went out
of the room for social events. I went to mosque. However,
when I contested for the president of my departmental
association, Business Administration Students
Association, the Nigerian system worked against me.
“I lost to my male opponent. Although I had plans to take
some giant strides if I won, especially in the academic
aspect for my fellow students, the fact that I was not the
type of person who hangs out worked against me. I
didn’t have a social life.”
She said she has no plans for marriage for now. She
wants to pursue a master’s degree programme in Human
Resources in the University of Aberdeen, Scotland. She
added that she also plans to work in a corporate
environment to garner experience and afterwards go back
to the university to teach “as a way of giving back.”
The second child in a family of eight children, Aishat
brought her six-year-old son, Damilola, to the
convocation. It was, however, learnt that the Edo State-
born father of the boy has since got married to another
woman.
She noted that her major challenge on campus was the
randomness of classes which denied her the opportunity
of spending quality time with her son while her stay in the
university lasted.
“We had visiting professors who came into the campus at
anytime. Although we had schedules, many of them had a
bit of flexible time. Sometimes on Sunday when I took
permission to visit my child in Lagos, my classmates
would call me up on the phone that there was going to
be a class. Because attendance is very important, I had to
rush down. This affected me a little,” she added.
Aishat’s father advised parents to give their children and
wards the best of tutelage and close monitoring. He noted
that he least expected the feat achieved by his daughter
as he was at a time disturbed that “she could no longer
make it.”
Asked if it was lack of adequate monitoring that made
Aishat go astray at UNILORIN, he said, “Let’s just say
that is how God wants it. You see, 70 per cent of the
fault is on us the parents. Parents should give their
children good supervision and tutelage. With this, they
cannot derail. I thank God for her because it’s is not easy
to have raised her from grass to grace.
“I screamed on the phone the day I learnt she was
pregnant. I started asking questions: When, where and
how. I burst into tears. But today, she is a new being.
And I know the mistake will not repeat itself. My
expectations for her are that she should fly higher and
higher.”
Some other graduands who distinguished themselves
were also recognised at the convocation ceremony.
Kolawole Lawal, who finished from the Department of
Economics with a CGPA of 4.73, received the Olusegun
Obasanjo’s Prize for being the best graduating student
with outstanding academic performance and leadership
qualities. Former President Obasanjo who is the Chief
Promoter of the university, also attended the event.
Francis Sogunle, from the Department of Computer
Science, who had a CGPA of 4.74, received the
Chancellor’s Prize for excelling in external competitions of
academic nature.
At the ceremony, 208 students were awarded first
degrees with Aishat and 13 others being conferred with
first class degrees, while 64 of them got second class
upper degrees; 83 bagged second class lower; just as 43
were awarded third class degrees. Meanwhile four of the
graduands finished with pass degrees.
The Vice-Chancellor of the university, Prof Isaac Adeyemi,
charged the graduates to be patriotic and dedicated to
nation building.
“Our beloved country is currently going through a rather
stressful period. All hands must be on deck to seek
lasting solutions to militancy and insurgencies and
disregard for the rule of law. This is the time to prove
your worth as you can’t afford to fold your arms or sit on
the fence,” he observed.
Punchng
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