BUILDING GENERATIONS

IGBOBI COLLEGE @ 90!

The prestigious Igbobi College was established by the Methodist and Anglican Churches in 1932 in the Yaba suburbs of Lagos, Nigeria.

Ninety years later, it still stands tall on its original site, with most original buildings intact.

It is one of the oldest legacy colleges in Nigeria and has been the alma mater of many prominent Nigerians. At the recent gala to celebrate this milestone, the THISDAY Style team had the opportunity to speak to some of the ex-students. The likes of Jide Coker who is currently a Board of Governors member, Folusho Phillips the Chairman, with other members like Femi Banwo, Yomi Badejo-Okunsanya, Seni Adio chairman of the 90th anniversary and more running run the school. They were very excited to relive some of their memories from their days as students, and they also shared their plans on how to keep giving back to the school to ensure it maintained its status.

VP PROF. YEMI OSINBAJO

“Most of us here old boys, owe a lot to who we are, our personalities, our values and our world view to our time at Igbobi College. “It was in Igbobi that I realised that I had a strength in the Arts, it was also there that I realized that I could never be a sprinter. “Igbobi placed a value on academic, sports and literary achievements. You were called on stage to receive your prize during the assembly, so you were recognized. But on the same stage, you could be publicly whipped for extreme bad behaviour, so reward and punishment were on that same stage and so it taught you very quickly the difference between good and evil. “Igbobi celebrated orderliness, honesty and self-denial. Anyone caught stealing became an outcast. there was just no excuse. There was also no special treatment. It didn’t matter whether you were from a wealthy or a prominent family or the son of a driver. The khaki that we wore was essentially a leveler. What was admired and celebrated was high achievement and exemplary character. And it shaped our world view. Money was not just important, excessive display of wealth was discouraged but character and achievement was always celebrated. “To maintain such high value, solid teachers of character were required, and these teachers were not impressed with anything but performance and good behaviour.”