Traditional rulers, vice-chancellors, senior academics and public intellectuals on Monday converged in Ibadan to honour renowned historian and global scholar, Professor Toyin Falola, as he marked his 73rd birthday, turning the city into a meeting point of cultural authority and academic excellence.
The gathering was the opening ceremony of the two-day Toyin Falola at 73 Conference, organised by Lead City University, Ibadan, and held at the Cresta Hotel, Onireke, GRA. The conference, themed Religion, Culture and Politics in Nigeria, attracted a wide spectrum of participants whose presence reflected the breadth of Falola’s influence across scholarship, institutions and traditional society.
The symbolic convergence of traditional rulers and university leaders underscored the respect Falola commands beyond the academy. Royal fathers of the day were HRM Oba Adekunle Adeogun-Okunoye, the Eburu of Iba in Osun State, and HRM Oba Adedayo Adekoya, the Legunsen of Ode Ule Kingdom, Ogun State. Speaking at the event, Oba Adekoya described Falola as “an enigma,” adding that “Professor Falola knew where he was going right from the word ‘go’,” a clarity of vision he said has continued to define his scholarly and personal journey.
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Welcoming the diverse gathering, the Vice-Chancellor of Lead City University, Professor Kabiru Adeyemo, described the ceremony as a rare moment where “knowledge, culture and leadership meet.” He noted that honouring Falola was both an academic and cultural duty, given his role in projecting African history and ideas to the global stage.
Vice-chancellors from other institutions also paid tribute to Falola’s enduring legacy. The Vice-Chancellor of Ajayi Crowther University, Professor (Mrs.) Ebunoluwa Oduwole, spoke emotionally about Falola’s role as a mentor and disciplinarian. “He has been a mentor,” she said. “If Professor Falola has to take a cane to put you on the right footing, he would hold a cane and he would, and you can be sure that there wouldn’t be any regret along that line.”
Oduwole recalled Falola’s personal involvement in her career development, describing how he organised a rigorous mock interview ahead of her application for a job in the United States. “He warned me that never should I reply them without contacting him,” she said. “He came with all his students to interview me. He told them to judge me whether I was prepared.”
Also speaking, the Vice-Chancellor of Koladaisi University, Ibadan, Professor Adeniyi Olatunbosun, described Falola as a scholar whose work has elevated African scholarship globally, noting that his intellectual contributions continue to inspire younger academics across institutions.
Providing historical context, the Pioneer Vice-Chancellor of Lead City University, Professor Johnson Aladekomo, recalled Falola’s early academic brilliance. “I was a lecturer when he was traversing the University of Ife, now Obafemi Awolowo University,” he said. “His brilliance was exceptional. It was clear that Toyin was destined for a very high placement, not only in the nation but also internationally.”
Aladekomo added that Falola’s sustained excellence remains a source of pride for Nigerian universities. “Nothing gladdens a teacher more than seeing products of his institution excelling at the international level,” he said.
In his remarks, the Chancellor of Lead City University, Professor Gabriel Ogunmola, framed the celebration as a collective affirmation of academic excellence. “We are all gathered here to celebrate a very distinguished academic that carries the banner of excellence from our soil to the rest of the world,” he said. “He is one of the pillars upon which Lead City University stands.”
Ogunmola urged the university community to honour Falola through concrete institutional commitments. “I want to charge our Librarian that there is no single publication of Professor Falola that cannot be found in our university library,” he said. “That is one of the ways to celebrate a scholar of such pedigree.”
The intellectual depth of the opening ceremony was further reinforced by the keynote address delivered by the Director of Research and Innovation Management at Osun State University, Osogbo, Professor Olukoya Ogen. In his lecture, Ogen situated Professor Falola’s scholarship within broader debates on religion, culture and political power in Nigeria, describing the honouree as a historian whose work consistently interrogates structures of authority and meaning in African societies.
Ogen noted that Falola’s intellectual career has been marked by an unusual ability to combine historical rigour with contemporary relevance, adding that “Professor Toyin Falola belongs to that rare class of scholars whose work does not merely interpret history but compels society to rethink itself.” He described the conference theme as particularly fitting, arguing that Falola’s scholarship has long examined “how religion shapes culture, how culture negotiates power, and how politics, in turn, reconfigures belief and identity in Nigeria.”
The ceremony was also attended by a broad spectrum of senior academics and public intellectuals, further reflecting the stature of the occasion. Among those present were Professor Femi Badejo and his wife; Professors Godwin Oyedokun, Akin Alao, Kehinde Obasola, Mobolanle Sotunsa and Ademola Dasylva. Also in attendance were respected public commentators Dr Lasisi Olagunju and Dr Festus Adedayo, whose presence underscored Falola’s influence beyond the confines of the university into the wider public sphere of ideas and civic discourse.
Responding to the tributes that flowed throughout the ceremony, Professor Falola spoke with characteristic humility, expressing surprise at the scale of generosity extended to him. “I don’t know the full sponsors of such celebrations in my honour,” he said, drawing gentle laughter from the audience. “Even the cloth that I am wearing at this event, I didn’t buy it for myself. It was given to me.”
Reflecting further, Falola posed a rhetorical question that framed his gratitude. “So the question is, why does one person receive so much generosity?” he asked. He attributed the celebration not to individual merit alone but to collective goodwill and institutional support. “To answer that, I thank the management, the founder, the vice-chancellor, the chancellor of Lead City University and the council of which I am a member,” he said.
Falola also extended his appreciation to those who have accompanied him across different phases of his academic and personal journey. “I thank my family, friends and associates who are here,” he added, noting that the presence of colleagues, students and well-wishers from different generations was, for him, the most meaningful aspect of the celebration.
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