{"id":6358,"date":"2026-11-11T23:47:15","date_gmt":"2026-11-11T23:47:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/consumerconnectng.com\/?p=6358"},"modified":"2026-11-12T00:09:40","modified_gmt":"2026-11-12T00:09:40","slug":"6358","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/consumerconnectng.com\/?p=6358","title":{"rendered":"OAU mourns as Prof. Wale Omole, former Vice-Chancellor, dies at 84"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>*<strong><em>Prof. Wale Omole, a former Vice-Chancellor of Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), in Ile-Ife, Nigeria, dies early hours of Wednesday, November 11 at 84, according to family sources<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Isola Moses | ConsumerConnect<\/p>\n<p>Prof. Adebowale Omole (Wale Omole), a former Vice-Chancellor of Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), in Ile-Ife, Nigeria, died Wednesday, November 11, 2026, at 84.<\/p>\n<p>Late Prof. Omole breathed his last early hours of Wednesday, according to family sources.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"0KQ4nnDaxQ\"><p><a href=\"https:\/\/consumerconnectng.com\/?p=6322\">AI Safety: Canada, France, The Netherlands, 3 others and tech giants sign pact<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; visibility: hidden;\" title=\"\u201cAI Safety: Canada, France, The Netherlands, 3 others and tech giants sign pact\u201d \u2014 Consumer Experience Is A Top Priority\" src=\"https:\/\/consumerconnectng.com\/?p=6322&amp;embed=true#?secret=FuabJKhzgf#?secret=0KQ4nnDaxQ\" data-secret=\"0KQ4nnDaxQ\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>The deceased, who also served as Chairman of the Editorial Board of The Guardian Newspapers, was renowned as a distinguished academic and university administrator whose career spanned several decades in Nigeria and overseas.<\/p>\n<p><em>ConsumerConnect<\/em> reports Prof. Omole served as the Vice-Chancellor of OAU, fondly called &#8220;Great Ife&#8221; by students and admirers of the University from November 1991 to November 1999, and became the first alumnus of the institution to occupy the position. Born August 13, 1939, Omole attended Ilesa Grammar School, in Osun State, before proceeding to then University of Ife, now Obafemi Awolowo University, where he obtained Degrees in Agriculture and Animal Science.<\/p>\n<p>He later earned a Doctorate in Nutritional Biochemistry from the University of Alberta, Canada, in 1973.<\/p>\n<p>He rose from the academic ranks at OAU, becoming a professor of Animal Science in the early 1980s and subsequently Dean of the Faculty of Agriculture.<\/p>\n<p>Beyond the academia, late&nbsp; Omole was actively involved in public affairs, intellectual development and journalism, as he also served as the Chairman, Editorial Board of The Guardian Newspapers.<\/p>\n<p>Born to Pa Emmanuel Adedeji Omole and Mama Beatrice Aarinola Omole, Adebowale attended Ilesa Grammar School (1956-1962), the deceased he had a stint as a civil servant at the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Ibadan, before his tertiary education at the University of Ife, an institution that shaped his life, times and remarkable career.<\/p>\n<p>Omole commenced his brilliant academic career at the University of Ife, bagging a Bachelor of Agriculture Degree and an MPhil in Animal Science in 1968 and 1970, respectively.<\/p>\n<p>Thereafter, he proceeded to the University of Alberta, Canada, where he obtained a doctorate in Nutritional Biochemistry in 1973.<\/p>\n<p>He has been described as an academic, who paid his dues at Great Ife, learning the ropes as an Assistant Lecturer, to become a Lecturer and Professor of Animal Science in the early 1980s.<\/p>\n<p>Late Prof. Omole later became Dean, Faculty of Agriculture, at his alma mater between 1983 and 1985.<\/p>\n<p>The deceased had a brief stint at Alabama A &amp; M University, in the United States (US), in 1986-1987, as a professor of Food Science and Animal Industry.<\/p>\n<p>His academic career was capped by becoming Vice-Chancellor of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, between 1991 and 1999. Thereafter, Omole became a citizen of the world, bagging several awards and playing different roles in different fields.<\/p>\n<p><strong>University\u2019s Governing Council, Senate, Management and students mourn Omole&#8217;s passage <\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, the Management of Obafemi Awolowo University have said they received with profound sadness the news of the passing of one of the University&#8217;s former Vice-Chancellors.<\/p>\n<p>The University described his demise as a painful loss to the Great Ife community, the Nigerian University system, and the larger academic community.<\/p>\n<p>The OAU considered his contributions to scholarship, university administration and the advancement of higher education in Nigeria.<\/p>\n<p>Abiodun Olanrewaju, Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the University, who stated this Wednesday described Prof. Omole was &#8220;an accomplished scholar and a distinguished university administrator whose association with Obafemi Awolowo University occupies an important place in the institution&#8217;s history.<\/p>\n<p>The University said his service as Vice-Chancellor, from 1991 to 1999, represented a significant chapter in the University&#8217;s continuing pursuit of academic excellence, institutional development and the preservation of its reputation as one of Nigeria&#8217;s foremost centres of higher learning.<\/p>\n<p>The statement also noted that his passing has provided an opportunity to reflect on the enormous responsibilities undertaken by those entrusted with the leadership of universities and the enduring footprints they leave behind.<\/p>\n<p>The University explained that as a former Vice-Chancellor, Professor Omole was part of the distinguished succession of leaders whose contributions have helped shape the identity, traditions and aspirations of Great Ife.<\/p>\n<p>Olanrewaju further stated Prof. Adebayo Simeon Bamire, Vice-Chancellor of OAU, on behalf of the Governing Council, Management, Senate, staff, students, alumni and the entire University community, extended heartfelt condolences to the immediate family of the departed academic, his friends, associates and all those who mourn his passing.<\/p>\n<p>Prof. Bamire noted though Prof. Omole&#8217;s earthly journey had come to an end, his contributions to the University and the broader academic community would remain part of the institution&#8217;s enduring history.<\/p>\n<p>The Vice-Chancellor prayed that Almighty God would grant the family the strength and fortitude to bear this irreparable loss and grant the departed academic eternal rest.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Professor Wale Omole may have taken his final bow, but his place in the history of Great Ife remains indelible,&#8221; Olanrewaju added in the statement.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>*Prof. Wale Omole, a former Vice-Chancellor of Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), in Ile-Ife, Nigeria, dies early hours of Wednesday, November 11 at 84, according to&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":6354,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_FSMCFIC_featured_image_caption":"Late Prof. Wale Omole, Former Vice-Chancellor of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife","_FSMCFIC_featured_image_nocaption":"","_FSMCFIC_featured_image_hide":"","_customify_content_layout":"","_customify_sidebar":"","_customify_page_header_display":"default","_customify_disable_header":"","_customify_disable_header_top":"","_customify_disable_header_main":"","_customify_disable_header_bottom":"","_customify_disable_page_title":"","_customify_disable_content_vertical_padding":"","_customify_disable_footer_top":"","_customify_disable_footer_main":"","_customify_disable_footer_bottom":"","_customify_breadcrumb_display":"","_customify_header_transparent_display":"default","footnotes":""},"categories":[20,3,8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6358","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-highlights","category-infoeducation","category-regulators"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/consumerconnectng.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6358","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/consumerconnectng.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/consumerconnectng.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/consumerconnectng.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/consumerconnectng.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6358"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/consumerconnectng.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6358\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6365,"href":"https:\/\/consumerconnectng.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6358\/revisions\/6365"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/consumerconnectng.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6354"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/consumerconnectng.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6358"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/consumerconnectng.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6358"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/consumerconnectng.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6358"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}