Kunle Adelabu with Simire God’sgift Oluwatobiloba (SIWES Student)
The Proprietor of HOMAT Group of Schools, Alhaji Hamzat Olawale Tairu, has explained how funding and his inexperience as an investor then made him jettisoned the idea of establishing a university which he also nursed.
Alhaji Amusa also buried any possibility of resurrecting the idea, stating that the stress involved in education management coupled with the fact that age is no longer on his side again, have totally made him lose interest, but will be willing to support any of his children and trusted ally that is serious about going into a private university establishment.
He spoke during a press conference heralding the celebration of the ongoing 30th anniversary of establishing the HOMAT Group of Schools held on Monday, at his office at HOMAT Comprehensive College, Igbogbo.
“I had that aim of establishing a university as far back as 15 years ago, when Caleb University was about to be established. A month after Caleb went to Abuja to submit their university form, I also went there to obtain mine. The forms are still here. I filled everything, from the layout to the structures to be built. They were designed by my friend, Mr. Sherrif.
“When I discovered that they required 100 acres of land, I ran to the Olu – Odo family in Igbogbo, but they couldn’t get me the required number of lands needed. Then, I went towards Ijebu-Ode road, but it was a swampy area. I later went to Sagamu road, precisely Sotubo, and they were willing to give me acres of land there at the rate of ₦700,000 per acre then.
“Yes, I had the opportunity to get a loan and I had already applied, but the setback came when they introduced another condition: for each kola tree, I had to pay ₦1,000″, he explained.
The HOMAT proprietor, who was a former President, National Association of Private School Owners, Lagos State, further explained his challenges, stating that the land owning family did not know the number of the trees that were on the land to know the exact amount that it would cost and that they would only be counting the three that have been removed.
He said that the situation made him jettisoned the idea but admitted that he would have acted otherwise if it would have been now that he is more experienced as a businessman and school manager.
“At that time, I wasn’t as smart as I am now. Today, I would have told them, okay, I’ll just pay for 20 acres, use that, and promise to buy more later. But back then, I felt it was too tedious”, he added.
He also explained that the cost of tuition fees in most universities at that time was not also encouraging, coupled with the fact that his colleges were also charging around the same fees.
“We had many students at that time. When we calculated what we were charging within a term, it was almost equivalent to what universities charged per session, about ₦200,000 to ₦250,000. Our school fees were roughly in that range. That was why I shifted my focus to establishing more secondary schools instead. Venturing into a university is something one cannot fully predict the cost of”, Alhaji Amusa said.
He further added: “Maintaining educational institutions at that level is capital intensive. Bank interest rates are as high as 37 percent per year. It often feels like one is working for the banks. Land is also very expensive, with a plot costing about ₦4 million. These challenges forced us to step down our plans for a university”, he said.
While foreclosing the dream of venturing into establishing a university, Alhaji Amusa, however, said that he can only give his support to any of his children or close ally that is interested in having a private university to achieve the dream.
“Maybe, if I have a child or someone very close to me that is interested in it, I can encourage. I will surely do that. But you know, the school business is very stressful. Monitoring the five schools that I have is stressful, and satisfying both children and parents is equally stressful. For now, age is not on my side, and in our system in Ikorodu, one needs to relax a little to enjoy the fruit of his labor”, he said.
He assured that HOMAT Group of Schools will continue to focus on its mission of delivering quality education and contributing to community development.
Founded in 1995 with only 87 pupils, HOMAT has so far established five secondary schools, one vocational study centre, and has also produced thousands of graduates.
