Happy birthday, Daddy Omotade!

We love and appreciate you, sir!

We greet thee, Dear Principal...

By Simbo Olorunfemi

Last year, I wrote about

Professor Sanya Adedojo Onabamiro (1913-1985), the enigmatic Nigerian Copepodologist and Statesman.

As I indicated then, my journey of discovery of the man was ignited by my school Principal, who in the course of his routine morning admonition and motivational talk, often made reference to the man and his work around guinea-worm and a discovery of his, named Onabamiroi Agoiwoyensis. It was startling for me, an 11 year old at the time, to hear that there was such a Nigerian, who on account of his ground-breaking work, had one of those jaw-dropping zoological names coined from his name.

That was Chief Omotade. Before we had an idea of what life was all about, he was already at work, inspiring us to dream big, aim high, work hard and be disciplined, for nothing is beyond the realm of possibility, if only we will believe. I remember the Saturday morning address in front of the hostel, after the inspection of all the rooms, with the beds well laid out in the best of white sheet each student could find. As we made to dodge the early morning sunshine, he would encourage us to stay in the sun, that we need it for Vitamin D.

Looking back, it is stunning what life was like back then. This was a school in laidback Idoani, at the corner of Ondo State, close to Edo and parents from different parts of Nigeria were willing to entrust children as young as 10 to the school for as long as 3 months, at a stretch, after which they start making the return journey home, by road and rail to places as far as Maiduguri and Sokoto.

Chief Omotade did not come up with the idea of Unity Schools. He was not the one who decided on Federal Government College, Idoani, but the task became his to bring the dream, from the scratch, to reality. And this he did, and with great success, by all counts. He, it was who made the school a citadel of unity, where young boys and girls from all parts of Nigeria lived as one, without thought and consideration for differences in tribe and tongue or religion. Who you are or where you come from was never, for once, an issue. Our Senior Prefect, at the time I came in was Benjamin Kongbeda. Samento (Samuel Agarah) took over from him.

Chief Omotade made Idoani home for everyone. He was a Father to us all. He was the Principal to us all, his children inclusive. The rules were the rules. They were applied, without discrimination. Was it the policy he instituted of a cut-off point in Physics, as qualification to make it to the Science class? Some parents didn't like that. Some wanted their children to study Medicine and will not be able to do that without Physics. Chief Comrade did not budge. The rule is the rule. Not even the pressure from men of power and influence would make him breach the rule. You do not meet the condition for moving on to the next class, you simply have to repeat the class, no matter who you are or your father is. And there were quite some big men as parents then.

Chief Omotade was quite strict. He knew us and what we got up to. Somehow, he always managed to catch up with us. At a point, we had to conclude he had some kind of supernatural powers with the way and manner he would magically appear when we thought we had mastered the peculiar sound of his Peugeot 504 Station wagon.

It will take us looking back to truly appreciate all he did for us, what he stood for and the values he instilled in us. Chief Omotade stood tall for integrity. As much as he wanted us to do well in the WASCE, looking forward to us setting records, yet he would never compromise on standards or integrity of the process. He relocated students from the classrooms to the massive dining hall for the examinations to completely eliminate the possibility of cheating or students assisting each other. Yet, we were so far away from everywhere and might have gotten away with anything, if so inclined. But not our school Principal, Chief Omotade.

I look back now and can only imagine what it must have been like building from the scratch, with nothing, in a town without supply of electricity and water, and the personal sacrifices he and his family must have had to make back then. We met in place arrangement for independent power supply, with tankers daily supplying water. One can only imagine the logistics behind what we took for granted then.

It is an understatement that products of the school are fond of our Principal. Each with his or her own recollection of the man, who has become our Father and a rallying point for us all. Indeed, Federal Government College, Idoani was moulded in the image of Chief Omotade. He nurtured the school as a baby. Years after his long stay as Principal, the Omotade spirit continued to reign there, serving as guide. Same way, the values he instilled in us continue to guide us, our steps and our outlook to life, many years after.

Evidence of his great work is there in the many bright minds from FGC, Idoani on this platform, with his spirit of excellence continuing to be passed from one generation to the other at Idoani. We are who we are because of the foundation he laid for us.

Happy 86th Birthday Sir. Many happy returns of the day.