OGBOMOSO – A brewing controversy over the origins of the Federal Polytechnic, Ayede, has intensified as Professor Josiah Olusegun Ajiboye, the immediate past Registrar of the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN), publicly challenged claims made by Senator Ayoade Adeseun regarding the institution`s establishment.

While acknowledging his personal respect for the former lawmaker, Prof. Ajiboye described Adeseun’s claim of facilitating the polytechnic as "totally wrong" and unsupported by the administrative history of the project.

The Core of the Dispute

The disagreement follows a recent interview where Senator Ayo Adeseun, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), claimed he attracted the institution to Ogbomosoland during his tenure in the National Assembly, even citing N500 million in facilitated funding.

In a detailed rebuttal, Ajiboye countered that the polytechnic was the result of executive action, not a legislative motion.

"Whenever a lawmaker facilitates the establishment of an institution, there must be a motion. Let him bring out the motion he moved either in the House of Representatives or in the Senate," Ajiboye challenged.

Prof. Ajiboye traced the actual approval of the polytechnic to June 2019, following a report he presented as the convener of a committee on Technical Teachers Training. According to Ajiboye:

While presenting a report to then-Permanent Secretary of Education, Arc. Sonny Echono, Ajiboye was informed that the government planned to establish six new polytechnics.

 Ajiboye immediately pointed out that Oyo State lacked a federal polytechnic and lobbied for one to be situated in Ogo-Oluwa Local Government.

He credited a "team of Ogbomoso indigenes" within the Ministry—including Mr. Ojo (Director of Tertiary Education) and Mr. Folorunsho (Deputy Director)—for drafting and moving the memo forward.

 He noted that Sir Olusegun Adekunle monitored the memo at the SGF`s office, while former Minister Sunday Dare supported the proposal at the Federal Executive Council (FEC).


Key Differences in Claims

Senator Ayo Adeseun claims to have initiated the idea to balance federal institutions in Oyo State, which previously only had the University of Ibadan, noting the lack of technical institutions.

Adeseun stated that he secured approval from the late President Muhammadu Buhari and the local traditional authorities (Soun of Ogbomoso) to site it in Ayede.

The Counter-Claim often surrounds the direct involvement of bureaucrats or other actors in the specific 2019/2020 final approval phases, though Adeseun maintains he initiated the core concept earlier.

Prof. Ajiboye clarified that while Adeseun may have harbored the idea years ago, it was the administrative push in 2019 that brought the school to life. He also lauded Senator Fatai Buhari and Hon. Segun Dokun Odebunmi for their roles in securing key appointments for the institution, and Chief Sunday Dare for renovating the temporary site at Iresaadu.

“I respect Senator Adeseun as a community leader... but history must be set straight,” Ajiboye remarked, noting that he felt compelled to speak out after reading "distorted" accounts of the school`s founding. He urged the public to verify his claims with the mentioned Ministry of Education officials.