By Ayodele Abere
The Ekiti State College of Health Sciences and Technology, Ijero-Ekiti (COHESTI), has recorded remarkable progress in academic development, infrastructure and staff welfare under the transformative leadership of the outgoing Provost of the Institution, Dr. Cecilia Olajumoke Adebayo, whose five-year tenure ended on September 30, 2025.
Speaking at a valedictory briefing on her scorecard, titled “Transformative Leadership: The Scorecard of Dr. Adebayo,” the second substantive Provost of the Institution expressed gratitude to God, former Governor Kayode Fayemi and incumbent state’s helmsman, Biodun Oyebanji for the opportunity to serve.
Dr. Adebayo, a distinguished academic with over three decades of experience in tertiary education, assumed office on October 2, 2020, at a time when the institution was faced with infrastructural deficits, low staff morale and poor internally generated revenue (IGR).
In her determination to reposition the College, she launched a comprehensive reform agenda anchored on four pillars, which she described with the acronym WILL, meaning Welfare, Infrastructure, Learning and Leveraging funds.
Dr. Adebayo was able to restore industrial harmony and peaceful atmosphere in the College, through open dialogue and mediation, as well as successfully resolving internal conflicts, boosted staff morale and reintroduced monthly prayer meetings to promote unity.
During her tenure, COHESTI witnessed major infrastructural expansion such as a 12-block classroom complex donated by Dr. Biodun Arokodare, a 500-seater lecture theatre and solar-powered street lights donated by Hon. Wumi Ogunlola, an ambulance, boreholes and additional street lighting donated by Senator Michael Opeyemi Bamidele.
Others include: installation of solar-powered boreholes, CCTV and street lights, construction of internal roads, renovation of lecture theatre and reconnection of the campus to the national electricity grid after several years of blackout.
In an attempt to boost academic culture, her administration organized Annual Conferences, seminars, workshops and trainings for staff as well as the launching of COHESTI Journal. Staff were sponsored to academic conferences and supported for further studies, which resulted in a significant rise in the number of postgraduate-qualified lecturers.
The Institution strengthened affiliations with many institutions, including Kwara State University, Malete (KWASU) and developed new directorates, such as, ICT, Research and Entrepreneurship.
Dr. Adebayo’s administration confirmed and upgraded 135 staff members who had been on temporary appointments for several years, implemented promotions and salary increases and ensured timely payment of wages and allowances.
In her passion for students welfare, she reintroduced students’ unionism after eight years of inactivity, revived sports and social activities, renovated hostels, improved water supply and enhanced campus security.
In her words: “I believe my tenure will be remembered, not for controversies, but for the courage to transform, the compassion to reconcile; and the commitment to leave COHESTI stronger than I met it.”
“Legacy is not about being remembered; it is about what endures after the applause fades. May COHESTI continue to shine as a beacon of knowledge, health, and hope for generations to come”.
Despite the progress made, Dr Adebayo identified key challenges such as limited funding, inability to access TETFund, incomplete projects like the perimeter fence and new Health Centre, including lack of utility vehicles.
She appreciated the COHESTI Governing Council, Principal officers, Management/Staff members, and Students for their support, during her tenure.
While wishing her successor an impactful administration, she appealed to the government and stakeholders to support the College’s proposed transmutation into a Polytechnic, so as to widen funding and academic opportunities.
