Former army chief donates $1.36m to UI College of Medicine

A former Nigeria’s Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Theophilus Danjuma, has donated a total of $1,363,108.43 to the College of Medicine, University of Ibadan (CoMUI), the highest individual donation so far to build a hostel block for students.

The donation made through the T.Y. Danjuma Foundation was in response to an earlier request by the college towards the realisation of the student hostel building project, and it will be used to build Block D of the student’s hostel.

The Provost, CoMUI, Professor Olayinka Omigbodun, made the disclosure during a joint press conference organised by the College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, and the Ibadan College of Medicine Alumni Association (ICOMAA) shortly after the sod turning of the hostel block to be built with the donation.

The donor was represented at the sod-turning ceremony by his wife, Senator Daisy Danjuma, who was accompanied by her sisters, Mrs Vicky Falope, a former permanent secretary to the Oyo State Government, and Dr Edugie Abigail Abebe, a former federal permanent secretary.

Address the media, the Provost, flanked by the Co-Chair of the Project Building Committee, Professor Gbemisola Oke, and the Deputy Provost of the College, Professor Adefatai Adeniyi, declared that the envisioned 280-room hostel, encompassing blocks A, B, C, D, E, and F, alongside a utility building, is designed to house a total of 664 students.

She declared that the building of the hostel was critical to the re-accreditation of the College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, by the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN).

According to her, the hostel building project, which is in partnership with the Ibadan College of Medicine Alumni Association (ICOMAA) Worldwide, is an alumni-driven initiative that will be done in phases.

While remarking that getting the project to its current level was because of God’s grace, Prof Omigbodun said Lt. General Theophilus Danjuma has shown again his love and passion for the good of ordinary people, calling on others to emulate him.

In their separate remarks, the President of ICOMAA Worldwide, Professor Emmanuel Otolorin, and a Platinum donor, Dr Modupe Sokunbi, both of whom joined the online press conference, thanked General Danjuma for the donation and support towards the actualisation of the project.

They lamented that although there are many individuals in the country with the means and wherewithal to help actualise the project, accessing and reaching out to them has been very difficult.

The duo appealed to other individuals to come to the aid of the College of Medicine to ensure the timely completion of the project, urging them to take a cue from the retired Army boss.