By Ayobami Ife, Abeokuta
Amid thunderous applause that seemed interminable as it kept resonating from the cheering lecturers, parents, students and other guests inside Oluwafemi Balogun Ceremonial Building, 27 – year old Dr. Temitope Ajala was named the overall Best Graduating Student, College of Veterinary Medicine, Federal University of Agriculture (FUNAAB) Abeokuta.
Dr. Ajala garnered 4.62 Cumulative Grade Point Aggregate(CGPA) to clinch the title at the institution’s 14th oath taking and induction ceremony into the Veterinary Medicine profession.
Dr. Ajala and 34 other newly baked veterinary medical doctors took the oath of office at a ceremony performed on them by the Acting Registrar of the Veterinary Council of Nigeria ( VCN), Dr. Nurallah Abubakar on Wednesday, May 31st, 2023.
His academic record showed that the young vet. doctor scored six distinctions in course core areas – Veterinary Pharmacology, Veterinary Surgery, Veterinary Theriogenology, Veterinary Pathology, Veterinary Parasitology and Veterinary Public Health & Preventive Medicine.
Also, two of his other colleagues – females – Dr. Dunsin Dorcas Oyetayo and Dr. Oreoluwa Faith Kehinde, the daughter of the university Vice Chancellor, Prof. Olusola Kehinde, equally shined with impressive academic records.
Addressing the inductees, the VCN’s AG Registrar, Abubakar urged them to abide by the oath and regard veterinary medicine as a noble profession, saying there are only 11 universities offering the course in Nigeria.
Also, the President, Nigeria Veterinary Medicine Association(NVMA), Dr. (Mrs) Olutoyin Adetuberu charged the inductees not to disappoint Nigeria in the areas of public health and preventive medicine.
Mrs Adetuberu reminded them that as veterinary doctors, they must be at the abattoir before 6.am daily to examine animals before they were slaughtered by butchers to prevent the passing of (zoonotic disease) deadly diseases such as Anthrax, Tuberculosis and flu from animals to the general public.
Fielding questions from our reporter, the Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof. Olusola Kehinde, said that the limited number of veterinary medicine graduates being turned out by FUNAAB despite facilities available followed the directive and quota allotted to it by the Veterinary Medicine regulatory body.
Prof. Kehinde however disclosed that the regulatory body had recently given the university leave to admit up to 60 students per session, expressing the confidence that in future, more graduates in vet. medicine would be coming out of the FUNAAB.
Speaking with our reporter, Dr. Ajala Trmitope who was garlanded with many awards and gifts for emerging the overall best graduating student, disclosed that his “unconditional love for animals and the quest for their welfare,” motivated him to study veterinary medicine.
He attributed his excellent academic performance to the help of God, self discipline, determination, shunning procrastination, burning his midnight candle and trying as much as possible to do the right thing at the right time to the best of his ability.
Lamenting that the country does not have enough veterinary doctors to care for animal health and also public health, Dr. Ajala expressed the optimism that in the next five or 10 years, he would be a notable researcher and employer of labour in Animal health care and veterinary medicine profession.
According to him, the greatest source of inspiration to him is the desire to be one of the “best Veterinary Doctors in Nigeria and the world at large.”
“What prompted me to study veterinary Medicine is my unconditional love for animal and my interest in ensuring good animal welfare. And I emerged as the overall best graduand among the rest, made 6 distinctions in core areas of the discipline through the help of God, self discipline, determination, avoiding procrastination, burning my midnight candle and also trying as much as possible to do the right thing at the right time to the best of my ability.
“By the grace of God, I want to be reckoned as a researcher and an employer of labour in the next five or 10 years. The greatest source of my inspiration is my desire to be one of the best Veterinary Doctors in Nigeria and the world at large,” he said.
•Picture: Dr.Dr. (Mrs) Olutoyin Adetuberu and Dr.Ajala Temitope
