• Describes His Investiture as a Crowning Moment, Calls for Greater Value for Humanities
By Waziri Isa Adam Gwantu
The Vice-Chancellor of Federal University Lokoja, Professor Gbenga Solomon Ibileye, has described his investiture as a Regular Fellow of the Nigerian Academy of Letters as “a crowning moment” and validation of the continued relevance of humanistic research to Nigeria’s development.
Prof. Ibileye was inducted into the preeminent academy in the humanities at a ceremony held at the University of Lagos yesterday, attended by scholars and well-wishers from different parts of the country.
Speaking shortly after the investiture in an interview with Education Monitor, the VC said the recognition was the highest in the humanities and came after a rigorous and competitive process. “Naturally, one would be glad. One would be elated. One would want to thank God for the grace of election, for the consistency that he has granted me… I believe that this is a crowning moment because this is the highest recognition in the humanities,” he said.
He stressed that the investiture underscored the place of the humanities in national life, warning that over-reliance on science, artificial intelligence and technology without humanistic grounding could be dangerous. “Because science, artificial intelligence, technology cannot drive society. We need to understand societies from a humanistic point of view, in order to endow science, technology with a humanistic approach, so that we can use technology for the good of society… it has to be anchored on the understanding of the needs of the society,” he stated. According to him, “if we rely on technology alone, if we rely on firearms alone, if we rely on armored tanks alone, we will destroy one another. Because our understanding of human relationships can even prevent the use and deployment of armament, of warfare before they escalate.”
Prof. Ibileye urged the government to deliberately realign policies to give prominence to the humanities, noting that current admission and funding structures skew heavily in favor of sciences. “There must be a deliberate realignment of governmental policies because I believe that we have not demonstrated sufficient understanding of the value of the humanities.
We have elevated scientific studies, scientific research over and above research in the humanities,” he said. He faulted the 60:40 university admission ratio skewed toward science courses, arguing: “starting from the admissions into the university which is skilled in favor of the sciences, 60 to 40, as if the humanities are of no relevance and of no value. I think that we have to retrace our steps and place premium on humanistic studies.”
The VC also drew lessons from the investiture lecture, saying indigenous languages must be mainstreamed into national development. He noted that children learn best when taught in their mother tongue during formative years, and that foundation cuts across science, technology and humanities.
On how FUL will domesticate the advocacy, Prof. Ibileye disclosed that the university has established a Centre for Translational Humanities – the first of its kind on the African continent. “We are already doing that. We have our Departments of Linguistics and English and Literary Studies. I have just established a centre for translational humanities… that centre is the first of its kind in the whole of the African Continent,” he said.
He explained that the centre is designed to ensure graduates of the humanities move beyond theory to practical interventions that transform society.
“That is the whole essence of that translational humanities, and that underscores our own understanding of the centrality of humanities to the stability and growth and development of the society,” he added.
The Nigerian Academy of Letters is the apex scholarly body for the humanities in Nigeria.
