ONASANYA’S THREE-YEAR SCORECARD: ABRAHAM ADESANYA POLYTECHNIC RECORDS 100% COURSE ACCREDITATION

 

Rector highlights infrastructure renewal, expanded academic programmes, staff welfare, improved security and stronger town-gown relations

By Femi Mebude, Alumnus, Abraham Adesanya Polytechnic, Mass Communication Department

There are things that do not appear immediately on a balance sheet. A completed laboratory may look like another building to a passer-by. A newly accredited course may sound like another administrative achievement. A functioning solar installation may simply be another piece of equipment on a campus.

But to a student who needs a laboratory for practical work, a lecturer trying to teach under difficult conditions, a parent looking for a credible institution for a child, or a community that sees a polytechnic as part of its own future, these developments mean something much more personal.

That is where the three-year journey of Engr. (Dr.) Mobolaji Agbolade Onasanya, Rector of Abraham Adesanya Polytechnic, Ijebu-Igbo, becomes more than a management scorecard.
It becomes a story about an Institution trying to grow. And growth, as every tertiary institution knows, is rarely without obstacles.

THE ACCREDITATION QUESTION
When Onasanya assumed office as the fourth substantive Rector of Abraham Adesanya Polytechnic on August 29, 2023, the institution was already carrying the familiar responsibilities of a growing state-owned polytechnic: educating students, maintaining infrastructure, supporting staff and responding to changing demands for technical and professional skills.

Three years later, the Rector says one of the defining achievements of his administration has been the 100 per cent success recorded in the accreditation of new courses and existing programmes presented for re-accreditation.
Independent reports also indicate that the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) conducted an assessment visit to the institution from November 3 to 6, 2025, granting full accreditation to selected programmes and approving a number of new programmes.

For the Rector, however, the significance goes beyond the certificate issued after an accreditation exercise. It is about opening new academic doors.
“It gives us the headroom to admit more students in the new academic programmes and increase the quota in the existing programmes,” Onasanya explained.

Behind that statement is a simple question:
What happens when more young people suddenly have more opportunities to study what they want?

The answer is perhaps best found not only in the Rector's office, but among the people who live, teach, work and study within the institution.

MORE COURSES, MORE ACADEMIC SPACE
The expansion in academic programmes has also brought visible changes to the academic landscape of the polytechnic.
For Dr. Aro Adebisi, Head of the Mass Communication Department, the expansion has not meant that older or existing programmes have been left behind.
He said Mass Communication has continued to receive appropriate attention, including the necessary moderation processes, even as new courses and departments emerge and occupy adjoining spaces within the expanding academic axis.

His observation is significant because Institutional growth can sometimes create a tension between expansion and consolidation.

For AAPOLY, the challenge is not simply to create new programmes, but to ensure that existing ones continue to receive the attention, facilities and academic standards required to remain competitive.

That is one of the central questions surrounding the Rector's three-year scorecard: can expansion take place without sacrificing quality?

FROM BUILDINGS TO FUNCTIONAL FACILITIES
Walk around a tertiary institution and it is easy to count buildings. It is more difficult to measure what happens inside them.

The Onasanya administration says it has prioritised the completion of inherited projects, including the School of Environmental Technology building and the Engineering Laboratory Complex, which contains four laboratories serving Computer Engineering and Electrical Engineering.

That distinction matters. For a polytechnic, where practical learning is central to its mandate, laboratories are not simply architectural structures.

They are part of the classroom.
A laboratory without adequate equipment cannot deliver the practical education expected of a technical institution.
This is why the accreditation process itself matters. The NBTE assessment process examines the facilities and academic environment necessary for institutions to deliver approved programmes.

ICT: A VIEW FROM THE INSIDE
One area where the administration's infrastructure claim receives strong endorsement from within the institution is Information and Communication Technology.

Dr. Banjo, Head of Section, ICT, applauded what he described as the Rector's decisive and practical leadership.
According to him, the administration has demonstrated a willingness to move beyond promises and get things done.
He particularly pointed to the ICT laboratories, describing their modern equipment and structures as standard facilities capable of attracting positive reactions from visitors and accreditation teams.

For an institution operating in an increasingly digital academic environment, the importance of such facilities extends beyond accreditation.

Modern ICT laboratories provide students with an opportunity to acquire practical skills in an environment closer to the technological realities they will encounter after graduation.

That, ultimately, is where infrastructure becomes more than construction. It becomes capacity.

THE HUMAN SIDE OF STAFF WELFARE
There is another side of institutional performance that is less visible. It is the welfare of the people who keep the institution running.

Onasanya says his administration has prioritised the payment of salaries by the 25th of every month, clearing long-standing pension arrears, introducing a salary advance scheme repayable over six months without interest, and providing training opportunities for academic and non-academic staff.

He also highlighted the implementation of CONTISS 15 migration, describing Abraham Adesanya Polytechnic as among the first state-owned polytechnics in Ogun State to implement the policy.

But behind every salary policy is a person.
A lecturer with a family.
A laboratory technologist.
An administrator.
A cleaner.
A security officer.
A technician.

People whose ability to concentrate on their jobs can be affected by whether their financial obligations are being met.

For the administration, therefore, staff welfare is not merely an industrial-relations issue. It is part of the institutional infrastructure required to sustain academic standards.

THE POWER THAT SHAPES THE CAMPUS
Then there is electricity.
Anyone who has spent time in a Nigerian tertiary institution understands that power is not merely an engineering issue.
It affects learning.
It affects administration.
It affects laboratories.
It affects computers.
It affects research.
And sometimes, it affects the mood of an entire campus.
For years, inadequate electricity has remained a challenge at the polytechnic. The administration says it has responded by expanding the use of solar energy, inverters and related equipment across several buildings and service units.

Onasanya consequently describes the institution as “a self-sustained institution in terms of power supply.”
The significance of this claim lies in what reliable power enables.
A student can work longer.
An ICT laboratory can function more effectively.
Administrative operations can continue with fewer interruptions.
Practical activities become easier to sustain.
Again, the real test is not the installation itself, but its reliability and effect on daily campus life.

SECURITY: FROM INFRASTRUCTURE TO CAMPUS CONFIDENCE
Another part of the transformation highlighted by those within the institution is security.
For Mr. Adegoke, Security Comptroller, the polytechnic has witnessed a significant improvement in its security architecture. He said the new system places virtually every part of the campus under close security monitoring, strengthening the protection of students, staff and property.

He also noted that the arrangement enables security personnel to promptly checkmate unwholesome activities.
Security may not normally feature prominently in an academic scorecard, but it is fundamental to the functioning of a tertiary institution.
Students need to feel safe.
Staff need to work in a secure environment.
Laboratories and equipment require protection.
And management needs an environment where academic and administrative activities can take place without persistent disruption.
In that sense, security becomes another component of the institution's broader infrastructure renewal.

THE COMMUNITY'S VIEW
But Abraham Adesanya Polytechnic does not exist in isolation. It is located within Ijebu-Igbo, and its relationship with the community is an important part of its institutional identity.

Onasanya says his administration has maintained regular contact with the Orimolusi of Ijebu-Igbo, other traditional rulers and members of the host community.

He described the relationship as cordial and said there had been no significant friction with the community during his tenure.

From outside the administrative structure, there is also a sense that the institution's development has implications beyond its gates.

Mrs. Ayomikun Dare, a parent and member of the host community, expressed satisfaction with the development of the polytechnic. She noted that the institution's growth has brought a positive impact to Ijebu-Igbo and the immediate community.

Her observation provides an important dimension to the town-gown question. A tertiary institution can generate employment, attract students and visitors, stimulate local businesses and contribute to the social profile of its host town.

The stronger that relationship becomes, the more the institution becomes part of the community's own development story.

WHAT DOES THREE YEARS REALLY MEAN?
Three years can be a short time in the life of an institution.
But three years can also be long enough for students to enter as fresh undergraduates and move closer to graduation.
It is long enough for a laboratory to move from a construction site to a learning environment.
Long enough for an ICT facility to evolve from an inadequate workspace into a modern laboratory.
Long enough for a staff member to feel the impact—or limitations—of a welfare policy.
Long enough for a security system to change the character of a campus.
And long enough for a community to decide whether an institution is becoming a better neighbour.
And long enough for management to be asked a fundamental question:
What has changed?
Onasanya's answer is built around accreditation, infrastructure, academic expansion, staff welfare, power supply, security and community relations.
The voices from within and around the institution provide another layer to that answer.
Dr. Aro Adebisi points to the continued attention given to existing academic programmes.
Dr. Banjo points to modern ICT infrastructure.
Mr. Adegoke points to enhanced security.
Mrs. Ayomikun Dare sees positive Community impact.
Together, these perspectives provide a more rounded picture of the administration's three-year journey.
But they also raise the next set of questions.
Can new programmes maintain quality as student numbers increase?
Can laboratories remain adequately equipped?
Can staff welfare commitments remain financially sustainable?
Can alternative energy systems continue to provide reliable power?
Can security gains be sustained?
Can the relationship between the polytechnic and its host community deepen further?
Those questions will determine whether the current achievements become a lasting institutional legacy.

THE SCORECARD BEYOND THE NUMBERS
A three-year anniversary naturally invites celebration. But journalism requires something more. It requires looking beyond the applause.

The 100 per cent accreditation claim is important.
The infrastructure projects matter.
Academic expansion matters.
Staff welfare matters.
Energy sustainability matters.
Security matters.
Town-gown relations matter.
Yet the ultimate measure is neither the number of buildings completed nor the number of programmes approved.

It is the student who graduates with usable skills.
The lecturer who can teach effectively.
The technician who has the equipment to demonstrate what is being taught.

The staff member who can work with confidence.
The parent who believes the child's education is worthwhile.

And the community that sees the polytechnic not as an institution standing beside it, but as an institution growing with it.

That may ultimately be the most meaningful measure of Onasanya's first three years.
Not simply what has been built. But what those achievements have enabled people to become.