Oriontimes Newsroom| October 7, 2026
EDE — The Vice-Chancellor of Redeemer’s University, Professor Shadrach Olufemi Akindele, has challenged graduating students and other Nigerians to embrace innovation, responsibility and purposeful leadership, stressing that the country’s challenges demand citizens who are willing to act rather than wait for someone else to solve its problems.
Professor Akindele gave the charge while speaking at the university’s 18th Convocation, where Omo Oba Erinle Ademola Adeleye, represented by Abiodun Ekebafe, delivered a thought-provoking convocation lecture titled “Reimagining Nigeria: Leadership, Innovation, and the Future of Nation Building.”
The Vice-Chancellor, while reflecting on the challenges confronting Nigeria, said citizens have a significant role to play in transforming the country, regardless of the difficulties they face.
“As citizens of this country, we have a lot to do regardless of the challenges confronting the nation. We have to think innovatively, especially those of us in the academic line.”
He further urged the graduating students to develop the capacity to operate effectively in an environment where resources are limited, emphasising the importance of understanding scarcity and learning to create solutions despite constraints.
‘Leadership Is Not a Waiting Game’
The central message of the convocation lecture was a direct challenge to the conventional understanding of leadership.
In the lecture delivered by Abiodun Ekebafe on behalf of Omo Oba Erinle Ademola Adeleye, graduates were encouraged not to regard leadership as a position they must patiently wait to attain through seniority, connections, titles or political appointments.
The lecture emphasised that leadership begins when an individual recognises a problem and chooses to act, even when nobody has formally appointed that person to do so.
Leadership, the lecture suggested, is the decision to act on behalf of people who did not appoint you, particularly when one recognises that failure to act would allow a problem to persist.
The message challenged graduates to stop waiting for positions before making meaningful contributions to society.
“Leadership is not a waiting game,” the lecture emphasised, urging young Nigerians to lead from wherever they find themselves, whether in the workplace, business environment, community, religious organisation or even within their immediate social circles.
Nigeria Needs Citizens Who Act
The lecture further observed that one of Nigeria’s major challenges is not necessarily a shortage of people seeking leadership positions, but the need for more citizens willing to take responsibility for solving problems without waiting for official authority.
It noted that nation-building does not happen only in government offices or political chambers. Rather, it is built through thousands of seemingly ordinary actions by teachers, engineers, entrepreneurs, civil servants, professionals and young people who choose to make a difference.
Graduates were encouraged to see their education not merely as a qualification for employment but as a responsibility to contribute solutions to society.
The lecture also cautioned against separating competence from character, warning that technical ability without integrity could make destructive leadership more effective.
‘Competence Without Conscience Is Dangerous’
According to the lecture, Nigeria needs leaders who combine competence with integrity rather than individuals who possess exceptional skills but lack the moral discipline required to deploy those skills responsibly.
The message was particularly relevant to graduating students entering a society confronted by economic pressures, unemployment, institutional challenges and the continuing search for sustainable development.
They were urged to resist the temptation to postpone leadership until they become “senior enough,” “connected enough” or “established enough.”
Instead, they were encouraged to begin with whatever resources, knowledge and opportunities are available to them.
Innovation as a Tool for Nation-Building
The convergence of the Vice-Chancellor’s remarks and the convocation lecture was clear: Nigeria’s future will depend significantly on citizens who can transform challenges into opportunities.
For the graduates, innovation should therefore extend beyond technology. It should include innovative thinking, problem-solving, ethical leadership, entrepreneurship and the courage to challenge systems that no longer serve society effectively.
The convocation thus became more than a celebration of academic achievement. It served as a reminder that university education carries with it a responsibility to society.
As the graduates leave Redeemer’s University, the question before them is not simply where they will work or how successful they will become, but what kind of Nigerians they will choose to become and what contribution they will make to the nation.
And perhaps the strongest lesson from the occasion is this:
Nigeria does not only need people waiting to become leaders. It needs citizens willing to lead now.
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