FIRST CLASS ISNT A DAY JOB

FOR Obakpolor Eki Osakpolor, mounting the podium to read the valedictory message on behalf of the graduating students of Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA) was a dream come true. He recently emerged as the overall best graduating student for the 2014/ 2015 set with a Cumulative Grade Point Aggregate (CGPA) of 4.84.
But the podium appeared to be a familiar terrain for the 22-year-old Physics graduate, as he had been used to winning laurels right from his primary and secondary school days where he also emerged as the best student of his set in 2009.
No wonder, during the FUTA convocation, the young man exhibited so much confidence when he mounted the podium to read his message, shaking hands with notable Nigerians on the podium and beaming with smiles over his success.
The vice chancellor, Professor Adebiyi Daramola, was proud of the young valedictorian’s achievement, standing up from his seat several times to help him adjust his cap each time it dropped off his head while reading his message.
Obakpolor attributed his achievement first to God, then diligence and determination to achieve the goal he set for himself as a fresh undergraduate in 2010.
Obakpolor also appreciated his parents for teaching and showing him the way of the Lord, which he said contributed to his harvest of successes since his primary school days.
He said, “There’s nothing we can do without God. My Christian background really helped because my Dad is a pastor who always feeds us with the word of God.  There’s nothing you can do without the help of Almighty. Man can only try and ask God to bless his efforts.”
But like all achievers, Obakpolor’s road to success was not paved with gold all the way; he failed the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) in 2009, but did not let this daunt him.
“In 2009, when I failed UTME, I did not lose hope; all I had to do was double my effort and ask for wisdom from God. To God be the glory, here we are today (I’m) reaping the fruits of my hard work and belief in my Creator that all things are possible through Him.
“My message to other graduating students is that failure is not the end of the world; but your ability to rise after that failure remains the only beauty of success. No matter what happens, or the obstacles, you should stand tall and prove to the world that you can still stand up again.”
Beyond his faith in God, however, what did he do to get here? Obapolor said, “the major thing I did was set my priorities right and knowing what should come first and always set a goal for myself with no distraction.”
To Obakpolor, studying Physics was a dream come to reality, explaining that he has passion for the physical world and the beauty of nature. He told Tribune Education that his next target is to be an innovative researcher.
While saying he had never been a bookworm, he nevertheless did his best to avoid “unserious elements.”
On some of his challenges while in the school, he valedictorian said the major challenge was in his first year when he needed to struggle for space and materials at the library, “but as we progressed, the stress became minimal.”
He said, “I will always love to attend FUTA over and over and over again to study more; there’s always one or two things to develop you and prepare you for the future. It’s a nice experience being here.”
And he had these words for other students as well: “Wherever we find ourselves and whatever we want to do, we should strive for excellence, to be the best.”