The best graduating student of the 2023/2024 session of the Kwara State University (KWASU), Mujab Olayinka Daud, has said his root in Arabic studies propelled him to achieve excellence in learning.
The computer science student emerged as the school’s valedictorian with a CGPA of 3.96 out of 4.00 during the 12th convocation ceremony and won seven prizes.
Daud, who went emotional during the event, explained that he cried realising the reason he was being celebrated.
“The tears just came rolling down my cheeks; I couldn’t help it but it was that of joy,” he said while speaking with the Daily Trust.
“I attribute all these to Almighty Allah and the support of my parents. Some people worked harder than I did but with Allah’s grace, people will see you as the one that has done the most.
“You need a lot of sacrifices and determination. Since the first day I stepped in, my goal was to finish as the best student. I am from a family that doesn’t settle for less,” he said.
He said his brother is also an alumnus of his school and finished with a first-class, so the challenge was to be better.
The Kwara State indigene from Oyun LGA, added that his attendance of Markaz Islamic and Arabic School, Lagos, assisted him a lot to be disciplined and rise above temptations.
“There was always temptation but it takes a lot of discipline, determination, prayer and remembering where I came from. I spent eight years in Markaz, Lagos, which impacted guidance in me about the dos and don’ts in dealing with others. This played a very major role in my success today,” he said.
He said he didn’t abandon social activities totally but did his best to reduce them to the barest minimum.
Daud said his dream is to be a globally recognised software engineer, adding that every great person today started somewhere and with prayer and determination, he believed he will get there in a few years.
He advised students and youths to put God first, work very hard and every other thing will follow.
On his reading pattern, he said: “I don’t really have a reading pattern, I read any time and I am okay with that. I know some prefer reading at night or where there is no noise. But I can read anywhere even with noise.”
Earlier, the vice chancellor of the university, Professor Shaykh-Lukman Jimoh, tasked new graduates of the institution to convert challenges into stepping-stones in the face of the discouraging rate of employment opportunities in the country.
“The education you have received here is your ticket to change the world. You have been tutored on the need for, and rudiments of being self-sustaining”, he said.
In his speech, the state governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, who was represented by the commissioner for Tertiary Education, Dr Mary Arinde, tasked the graduates to be good ambassadors of their alma mater and the state.
He charged them to leverage the knowledge and skills they have acquired to make meaningful impact in society.