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By Oluseye Ojo
The Chancellor of Precious Cornerstone University (PCU), Ibadan, Archbishop Francis Wale Oke, and its Pro-Chancellor, Prof Dapo Asaju, have urged the Federal Government to extend the benefits of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) and the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) to private universities.
They argued that it was unfair for the government to collect taxes from private organisations, including private universities, while excluding their students from government-funded educational support schemes.
Oke, who is also the National President of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN), and Asaju, a Bishop in the Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion, made the appeal during a press conference shortly after the university’s fifth convocation ceremony in Ibadan on Wednesday.
The duo questioned why private organisations should contribute to government revenue through taxation but be excluded when the proceeds are deployed to support tertiary education.
They maintained that students in private universities were equally Nigerians and deserved access to government-backed educational interventions, particularly the student loan scheme.
Their appeal came as PCU graduated 148 students at its fifth convocation, bringing the total number of graduates produced by the institution since its establishment to 604.
The university also produced 25 first-class graduates, with Miss Temidayo Adelaja of the Department of International Relations emerging as the overall best graduating student with a Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of 4.83 out of a possible 5.0.
Speaking at the ceremony, the Vice-Chancellor, Prof Timothy Adejumo, said the university had recorded significant achievements in academic excellence, research, infrastructure development and student advancement.
He disclosed that the 148 graduates completed their studies across 11 academic programmes, with 25 obtaining First Class Honours, 69 Second Class Upper, 44 Second Class Lower and 10 Pass degrees.
Adejumo also announced that the National Universities Commission (NUC) had approved seven additional programmes for the university, with an admission capacity of 350 students.
The newly approved programmes are Christian Religious Studies, Music, Performing Arts, Community Health Science, Medical Laboratory Science, Nursing Science and Public Health.
He said the approvals followed a successful resource verification exercise, adding that the university was also pursuing approval for additional faculties of Law and Engineering.
On academic quality assurance, the Vice-Chancellor disclosed that PCU recorded a 100 per cent success rate in the NUC accreditation exercise conducted between October 29 and November 19, 2025, as all six undergraduate programmes presented for assessment secured full accreditation for five years.
The accredited programmes are Economics, Accounting, Business Administration, Microbiology, Biochemistry, and Physics and Electronics.
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On research, Adejumo said the university’s academics published 32 journal articles and three book chapters during the reporting period, with six of the journal articles indexed in Scopus, an international database of peer-reviewed research publications.
He added that 26 students were admitted into postgraduate programmes out of 32 applications received, while six proposed postgraduate programmes successfully underwent resource verification.
On infrastructure development, he identified the construction of Cornerstone City, the university’s proposed permanent site, as one of its major priorities.
According to him, the first phase of the project comprises 12 buildings, including three faculty buildings, male and female hostels, an administrative building, an auditorium, a clinic, a cafeteria, a sports complex and a 40-room guest house.
He said construction had commenced, with the hostel projects receiving donations of N200 million from Apostle Joshua Selman and N150 million from Pastor Jerry Eze.
The university, he added, was targeting the completion of the first phase within one year.
Delivering the convocation lecture titled ‘From Degree to Relevance: Thriving in a Skill-Driven World’, Rev. Deji Olabode urged the graduates to complement their academic qualifications and professional skills with strong moral values.
He identified integrity, truthfulness, loyalty and trustworthiness as essential qualities needed to distinguish graduates in an increasingly competitive world.
Olabode argued that technological advancement and the growing availability of online learning had made the acquisition of skills alone insufficient to guarantee a competitive advantage.
He advised the graduates to remain trustworthy, appreciate those who had invested in their education and remember their alma mater by giving back as they progressed in their careers.
In her valedictory speech, the best graduating student, Adelaja, expressed gratitude to God, the university management, lecturers, parents and other supporters for their contributions to her academic success.
She urged her fellow graduates to uphold the moral values they had acquired during their studies.
The convocation ceremony was presided over by the university’s Visitor, Archbishop Francis Wale Oke, while the Pro-Chancellor, Prof Dapo Asaju, was also in attendance.
