The inauguration of the governing council of the Federal University of Agriculture and Technology, Okeho, in Oke Ogun, is not just a routine political event; it is a bold marker of progress for Oyo North and a sign of what determined leadership can deliver. By working tirelessly to bring the institution to life and guiding the process that led to the launch of its governing council, Senator Abdulfatai Omotayo Buhari has handed his people a gateway to opportunity, a place where education, technology, and the rich natural wealth of the region can meet to build a better future.
Oke Ogun’s vast landmass and fertile soil have always been its pride. Farmers across the area grow cassava, maize, yam, cashew, cocoa, and other crops in abundance, but for years much of this produce has been sold raw, leaving the region without the industries and jobs that real processing and innovation could create. The university now provides a solid platform to change that story. With its focus on agriculture and technology, it can train a new generation of agronomists, food scientists, and entrepreneurs who will turn raw harvests into packaged products, modernise farming, and open new markets. It is also a call for leaders in Oke Ogun that is traditional rulers, businesspeople, local councils, and state agencies to see the institution as more than lecture halls. We must partner with it to set up research farms, support start-ups in food processing, and attract investors who can build plants and factories that add value to the region’s produce. If handled wisely, this single achievement could make Oke Ogun the nation’s foremost hub for agricultural technology and rural innovation.
Senator Buhari’s success with the university is part of a larger record of service built over many years. From water projects that have given clean drinking water to rural families, to solar lights that make streets safer, to the renovation and construction of classrooms, his fingerprints are visible in communities across Oyo North. Roads linking farmers to markets, empowerment programmes for women and youths, grants and working tools for artisans and small traders all speak to a leader who understands that progress must be felt in everyday life, not just discussed in Abuja. His work in the Senate, including his role as Chairman of the Committee on Aviation, shows the same consistency and quiet strength, with bills and motions that reflect his concern for development, education, and good governance.
What stands out most is the way he treats representation as a bridge between government and grassroots needs. By turning big ideas into real projects, he has shown that politics can be about solving problems, not just winning elections. The Federal University of Agriculture and Technology, Okeho, is living proof: an idea turned into a landmark, a promise fulfilled for farmers, students, and families who dream of a stronger economy.
As the doors of the new university open, the future of Oyo North depends on how well this gift is used. The people of Oke Ogun, together with our leaders, have the chance to turn the region into the face of Nigeria’s agricultural technology revolution a place where young minds design new tools, where farmers apply modern science, and where industries transform local harvests into wealth and jobs. It is a vision of a self-reliant, innovative, and prosperous district, and it rests on collaboration between the institution, government, and private partners.
Senator Abdulfatai Buhari has shown that progress comes from patience, hard work, and focus. The challenge now is to build on the foundation he has laid. If Oyo North embraces the opportunities offered by the Federal University of Agriculture and Technology, Okeho, it can create a future in which its fertile land, its bright youth, and its industries thrive together and ensure a future where the region is no longer only the food basket of Oyo State, but a national beacon for agricultural technology and rural prosperity. In that journey, Senator Buhari’s name will stand as a reminder that real leadership is about lighting a path for others to follow.
The coming of the Federal University of Agriculture and Technology, Okeho, is more than a feather in Senator Abdulfatai Buhari’s cap; it is a trumpet call for Oke Ogun to rise. Our land is vast, our soil rich, our people gifted with strength and intelligence. Yet for too long, our harvests have left our farms unprocessed, and our youths have travelled far to find opportunities that could have been built here. I was a young child who travelled to study Agricultural Administration from Federal University of Agriculture Abeokuta years back.
It’s a thing of joy that this our university has given us the key to unlock these doors. It is a chance to explore every acre of our fertile ground, to apply research to farming, to invent tools that ease labour, and to build industries that add value to what we grow.
But bricks and classrooms alone will not change our story. The real transformation will come when traditional rulers, elected officers, local councils, and grassroots organisations stand together to use this institution as a springboard for agro-industrialisation.
- Imagine Oke Ogun where cassava becomes high-quality starch and flour packaged for export
- Imagine where tomatoes, cocoa, and cashew are processed in modern plants within our communities
- Imagine where young graduates develop apps and machines that make farming smarter.
This is how a district becomes the face of agricultural technology in Nigeria. Not by waiting, but by working hand in hand with government and investors to turn knowledge into production.
Indeed Senator Buhari has done his part by opening this door. He has shown that leadership is about building platforms for others to climb. Now the task belongs to all of us: to protect the gains, to keep pushing for funding and innovation, and to make sure the university serves as an engine for jobs, research, and prosperity. Oke Ogun must not allow procrastination or old habits to rob us of this future.
We must write a new chapter where our fields, our factories, and our classrooms speak the same language of growth.
The time to act is now. Let us seize this moment with courage and vision, so that in years to come, history will remember how a senator’s commitment and a people’s resolve turned Oyo North into a model of progress and pride.
A beacon of agricultural technology and rural wealth for the whole nation.
Let me drop my unassailable pen for now, I remain your servant leader;
OYEDOKUN EBUNOLUWA
(Ebunitesiwaju)
+234 8166094721
