Osinbajo Decries ‘Broken’ Schools as Igbobi College Launches ₦10bn Endowment Fund

Former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has warned that Nigeria is “paying a heavy price” for the neglect of its education system, describing many of the nation’s schools as “broken” and “underfunded.”

Osinbajo spoke at the 94th Founders’ Day celebration of Igbobi College, where he stressed that the foundations of leadership are laid long before adulthood.

 

“The discipline of waking up at 5:30 AM and the ‘lights out’ rules in secondary school are what actually build great leaders,” he said. “The habits that sustain adults are formed in school, not improvised later in life.”

According to Osinbajo, the roots of effective leadership extend beyond public office. “By the time a child turns 18, their ethical instincts are already likely formed,” he noted, adding that national leadership failures often reflect weaknesses in foundational education.

The event was moderated by Professor of Strategy and Development, Prof. Anthony Kila, and centred on the theme: “Building Generational Strength for Educational Institutions in Nigeria.”

Osinbajo used the occasion to advocate for endowments as a strategic tool for sustaining educational institutions. He described an endowment as a pool of funds or assets donated by individuals or corporations and set aside to support schools over the long term.

“Many great institutions are backed by large endowments that sustain their operations for decades,” he said.

“Endowments are not just about financial provision; they are about sustaining standards, cultures, values and norms. It is not just continuity, but continuation of an ethos and a world.”

He recalled that Igbobi College, founded in 1932 by Anglican and Methodist missionaries, was itself built on endowment support. While the school charges fees, Osinbajo explained, the moral and civic environment that shaped generations of students was made possible by earlier philanthropic sacrifices.

Reflecting on his own career in public service, he attributed his principled stance in government to values instilled during his secondary school years. “I served in several governments, but I was never able to be sycophantic,” he said. “Ingrained in me is an abhorrence of empty praise. Yet we learned respect for hierarchy, balance and self-respect.”

In response to the institution’s challenges, the Igbobi College Old Boys’ Association (ICOBA) unveiled a ₦10 billion Endowment Fund to revitalise the school and secure its legacy for the next century.

Chief Yomi Badejo-Okusanya, the 12th President of ICOBA, announced that the fund would finance new hostels, upgrade science laboratories and introduce advanced learning technologies. He assured stakeholders that professional asset managers, Chapel Hill Denham, would oversee the fund to ensure accountability.

“We don’t want anyone to ‘use the money anyhow,’” he said, urging alumni to contribute generously. Quoting an Igbo proverb — “Good soup na money kill am” — he emphasised that quality requires investment and long-term commitment, even encouraging contributions from the estates of deceased alumni.

Representing the Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education, Jamiu Tolani Alli-Balogun, pledged government support for initiatives such as ICOBA’s fund.

“When a school like Igbobi produces disciplined individuals, it helps the government save money on social problems and strengthens the leadership pipeline for the nation,” he said, linking educational quality to infrastructure management and national development.
Chairman of the lecture, Mr Ademola Adeyemi-Bero, described endowment as a shift from “short-term intervention to long-term institutional stability,” underscoring the need for structured, professional management of educational assets.

Osinbajo concluded with a reminder of education’s generational impact. “Every investment in a school is an investment in the future of the country,” he said. “Our early leaders did not emerge by accident; they were shaped by schools deliberately protected from volatility.”

The former vice president, who attended Igbobi College between 1969 and 1975, recalled receiving the State Merit Award and the African Statesman Intercollegiate Best Speaker’s Prize — achievements he credited to the institution’s disciplined, value-driven environment.

As the college approaches its centenary, stakeholders say the ₦10 billion endowment represents not just financial reinforcement but a deliberate effort to safeguard the standards and ethos that shaped generations of Nigerian leaders.