It was a day of joy for 50 medical students of the Osun State University and their parents at the weekend as they ended their medical studies at the V.N Karazin Kharkiv National University, Kharkiv, Ukraine.
One of the new medical doctors, Miss Oyeleye Lateefah Abiola, was named by the Vice-President for Research and Education of the University, Prof Mykola O. Azarenkov as the overall Best graduating student from both the Faculty of Medicine and in the entire university.
She scored 95.6 per cent in the final examination for graduating students.
The convocation arena erupted in cheers as the best graduating student mounted the stage to deliver her speech.
The Karazin Kharkiv National University is 213 years old and one of the leading universities in the Eastern Europe. It is second oldest university in the Ukraine, second only to the University of Lviv, Ukraine.
The university has produced at least three Nobel Prize laureates. They include Ilie Mechnikov (Nobel Prize in Physiology/Medicine); Simon Kuznet (1971 Nobel Prize in Economics); and Lev Landau (Physics).
They were among the 87 who were sponsored by the Ogbeni led Government of Osun in 2013 to study Medicine at the National University of Kharkiv, Ukraine out of the inherited 98 students who secured admission to study Medicine at the state-owned University but could not continue due to non-accreditation of their medical program for lack of a standard teaching hospital.
Respite came the way of the students, who were in their year 3rd, 4th and 5th years respectively when the governor decided to send them to Ukraine after a rigorous search for universities across the world where their dreams of becoming medical doctors could be realized.
The Deputy Governor, Mrs Grace Titi Laoye-Tomori, who represented Ogbeni at the event, said the graduation of the students was dream come true.
According to Laoye-Tomori, “We feel fulfilled that the students, who would have had their dreams aborted, have today realized their ambition of becoming medical doctors. This is one of our outstanding success stories in Osun.
“ In spite of the acute paucity of funds that our state has been facing, we never renege on our promise to see them through. Today, we are happy we have caused their dreams to become realities.”
The Vice Chancellor of the Osun State University, Prof Labo Popoola, said at the graduation ceremony “This is an indication of leadership with vision.”
The Best overall student, Miss Lateefah Oyeleye Abiola, said the new medical doctors would be forever grateful to the state government of Osun and Aregbesola for making the dreams possible.
“We are here today proud that from the loss of hope that we were plunged into, we have been raised with new vigor. We have seen in Osun a responsible government, which would not let its citizens down. Words are not enough to celebrate our victory. We have won,” she told the crowd.
The Government of Osun in fulfilling that the students become doctors in years 2012, 2013 and 2014 expended the sum of N60,647,200, N68,445,465, N64,215,800 respectively.
The Osun Government also in years 2015 and 2016 academic sessions spent N85,833,750 and N116,495,258.40, totaling N495,637,473.40.
Besides the initial 87 students who then were in 300-500 levels, government also assisted a total of 29 other medical students who were in 100 and 200 levels to secure admission to the university and process their traveling documents but were sponsored by their parents.
Pix: Best Graduating Medical student of V.N Karazin Kharkiv National University,
Ukraine, Dr Lateefat Oyeleye; Osun Deputy Governor Mrs Titi Laoye-Tomori (Middle); Vice Chancellor, Osun State University
(UNIOSUN) Prof. Labo Popoola (4th left) and other officials of the university, during the
2016/2017 Convocation Ceremony where 50 Students of Uniosun sponsored
by Osun Government, Graduated in Ukraine, on Friday 30th June, 2017
