Afe Babalola, an example of sowing and reaping

The composer of the popular song in the Christendom today, to wit: “Everything na double-double” must have had the founder & chancellor of Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti, ABUAD, Aare Afe Babalola, OFR, CON, SAN, LL. D (London), Fellow, King’s College, London, FNAE, in mind when he composed the song.

This is because the totality of that song tallies with today’s conferment of the honourary Doctor of Laws (LL. D.) of Trinity Western University, Canada, TWU, and Trinity International University, USA, TIU, on Babalola, the valiant Entrepreneur, the unsparing philanthropist, the proponent of quality, functional and impactful education and a man with a voracious appetite for excellence.

But then, Babalola is not new to the concept of “double-double”. After all, he earned two Bachelor’s Degrees (B.Sc. in Economics 1959 and LL. B. (Hons) in 1963) from the University of London through the University’s International Programmes.

In addition to the above and in appreciation of his incredible and immeasurable contributions to humanity, the University of London conferred on this legal giant its Honourary Doctor of Laws at an impressive ceremony attended by representatives from 92 countries on Wednesday, March 11, 2015, thus making him a triple alumnus of the University, having obtained the University’s B. Sc. (Econs) in 1959 and LL. B in 1963.

The honourary award has also made Babalola the first African to be so honoured with an LLD in the 179-year history of the University of London, bearing in mind that former South African President Nelson Mandela received the honorary doctorate in Economics of the University in 1996 while Archbishop Desmond Tutu was conferred with the Honorary Degree in Divinity at a ceremony held in the Senate House on December 2, 2008, to celebrate the anniversary of the foundation of the University.

Without any iota of doubt, today’s double Awards by two international universities of note are firmly rooted in the scriptures, to wit: Genesis 8:22, II Corinthians 9: 6 and Luke 6:38.

Whereas Genesis 8:22 says: “As long as the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest… shall not cease”, II Corinthians 9: 6 says: “But this I say, He that soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly, and he that soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.” On its part, Luke 6:38 says: “Give, it shall be given to you, good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom, for with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.”

It is a notorious fact that Nigerians have an uncanny penchant for titles. No wonder, they have since left the palatial palaces of royal fathers for the ivory tower, shopping for titles to satisfy and further inflate their already bloated egos. Unfortunately, universities are ever ready to play ball by making these academic titles available to the highest bidders, not minding whether they are worthy and deserving of such titles in the first instance.

But Babalola’s case is patently different. In his own case, whereas some others are shopping for titles, this many-sided frontline legal icon whose life is defined by and predicated on the superlative virtues of hard work, determination, dedication, excellence, philanthropy and patriotism is being rewarded nationally and internationally for his stellar investments in education and in other spheres of human endeavour. The latest is the honorary LL.D. of TWU, Canada and TIU, US.

After making his marks in legal practice, he veered into education by establishing ABUAD in 2009 to teach Nigerians how a university properly so-called should be run. He accompanied the university with his 400-bed ABUAD Multi-System Hospital which was commissioned on October 20, 2017, and commenced clinical operations on March 21, 2018.

Luckily and in full realization of his dream, hope and vision, his university was rated by Times Higher Education Sustainability Impact Ratings on Wednesday, June 24, 2026, as No. 1 in Nigeria for five consecutive years (2022-2026), No. 2. in Africa and No. 72 globally, making it the only Nigerian university rated among the Best 100 universities in the world, while the ABUAD Multi-System Hospital has been acknowledged by leading healthcare stakeholders as “the most well-equipped Hospital in Sub-Saharan Africa”.

For his sundry contributions to humanity, including building and donating towering edifices to Universities, Hospitals, Professional Bodies, Social Bodies and offering multi-million Naira scholarships to outstanding students and the needy, society, locally and internationally, has not failed to acknowledge Babalola’s immense contributions to make the world a better place to live in.

READ ALSO: I built ABUAD world-class university — Afe Babalola

Before the twin TWU and TIU Awards today, Babalola has earned 12 Fellowships from reputable institutions and frontline Professional Bodies such as King’s College, London, Nigerian Society of Engineers, Nigeria Academy of Pharmacy, and eight Honourary Doctorate Degrees from some Nigerian and foreign universities including University of London, University of Lagos, University of Ibadan and the elite Nigerian Defence Academy.

The news of today’s icing on the cake of Babalola’s assemblage of Honourary Degrees was made known on Friday, July 10, 2026, when Dr. Philip Laird, the Senior Vice President, Global Engagement & Government Relations, Trinity Western University, Canada, (TWU), presented the invitations from the two universities to Babalola in Ado-Ekiti.

Laird, who is currently on secondment to Trinity International University, USA (TIU), affirmed that the proposed conferral by Trinity Western University, TWU, Canada, and Trinity International University, TIU, US, represents one of the highest distinctions the universities can bestow on anyone.

Emphasising the exclusiveness of the awards, Laird said that “they are reserved for individuals whose lives and accomplishments have made exceptional contributions to society and whose influence extends far beyond the boundaries of their profession”.

His words: “In honouring you, we recognise your extraordinary impact on legal scholarship, educational innovation, philanthropy, social development, nation-building, and leadership. Yet I must say with sincerity that the privilege belongs not only to the recipient. Indeed, the greater honour belongs to us. It is the privilege of Trinity Western University in Canada and Trinity International University in the United States to be associated with your remarkable legacy.

He added: “It is our privilege to welcome you into the fellowship of our most distinguished honorary graduates. It is our privilege to celebrate a man whose life demonstrates the noblest aspirations of humanity: excellence without arrogance, achievement accompanied by generosity, influence guided by wisdom, and leadership grounded in service.

“And so today, as we look forward with anticipation to October 21, 2026, when our institutions will formally confer upon you the degree of Doctor of Laws, Honoris Causa, we do so with immense gratitude and admiration.

“Aare Afe Babalola, your life has enriched countless communities. Your vision has empowered generations. Your legacy has strengthened Africa and elevated global higher education. You have shown us that one person’s faith, determination, and commitment to the common good can alter the course of history.

“For this reason, your name will continue to inspire students, educators, leaders, and citizens for generations to come. On behalf of Trinity Western University and Trinity International University, we thank you, we honour you, we appreciate you and we celebrate you.

“May God continue to bless you with health, wisdom, and strength. And may your extraordinary legacy continue to illuminate the path for future generations throughout Africa and across the world.”

“Your remarkable legal career established standards of excellence that have earned admiration throughout Nigeria and beyond. Yet it is through education that your legacy may shine most brightly. Through the founding of ABUAD, you created far more than a university. You created a beacon. A beacon of scholarship.A beacon of innovation. A beacon of ethical leadership.A beacon illuminating the path toward a stronger and more prosperous Africa.

“ABUAD stands today as living testimony to what happens when vision is combined with courage, commitment, resources, and faith in the limitless potential of young people. Its classrooms, laboratories, clinics, farms, and centres of innovation are not merely facilities, they are instruments of transformation, preparing future leaders who will shape nations and improve lives. And while many leaders speak about change, Aare Afe Babalola chose to build it.

“While many imagine a better future, you invested your life in creating it. While many seek recognition, you have devoted yourself to service. It is therefore entirely fitting that Trinity Western University should recognize in Aare Afe Babalola a leader whose values resonate deeply with our own commitment to character, excellence, service, and transformational education”.

Reacting to the dual developments, Babalola observed that it is not often that two universities of note in Canada and the US would send someone to Nigeria to inform someone who grew up on the farm, some seven miles from Ado township, without basic clothing, of impending awards by two leading universities in the world.

Babalola, who said he did not know whether to laugh or weep about the latest developments in his life, added: “But here I am today being celebrated by two great universities, one in Canada and the other in the United States of America. I give glory to God for what He has enabled me to achieve.”

He said what would surprise Laird and indeed every other person is the fact that he (Babalola) deliberately elected not to write a will which would only take care of his children but instead chose to do something that would benefit the world at large: the establishment of his private university in 2009 for the entrenchment of functional, quality and impactful education that would change the country for the better.

According to him, the June 24, 2026, rating of his university by Times Higher education Impact Sustainability Ratings as No.1 University in Nigeria for five consecutive years (2022-2026), No. 2 in Africa and No. 72 globally constitutes a happy and welcome realisation of his hope, dream and wish of setting up his university.

He added: “Today, the world is aware of the difference I am making through my university. That is why Dr. Laird is here to represent two universities which are honouring me with their honourary Doctor of Laws Degrees for which I am eternally grateful”.

Babalola has sowed in rain and shine. This is his harvest time. He had sowed bountifully and he is equally reaping bountifully, happily and satisfactorily. He has given. Both national and international societies are now giving back to him, good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over.

Nigerians, particularly the students, should emulate Babalola. They should go a step further to always remember the mercurial words of Joseph Addison, an English Essayist, who once said that: “Education is a companion which no misfortune can depress, no enemy can alienate, no deposition can enslave. At home, (it is) a friend, abroad, an introduction, in solitude, a place and in society, an ornament. It chastens vice, it guides virtue, it gives, at once, grace and government, to genius. Without it, what is man? A splendid slave, a reasoning savage”.

If we are not to become mere splendid slaves and reasoning savages, we must appreciate the place and the import of education, garnished with learning and character, as a tool to developing a person into a total man. Besides, we must always remember that the triumph of evil over good is only ephemeral.

*Olofintila is ABUAD’s Director of Corporate Affairs.