LAUTECH Best Graduating Student Defends NELFUND Appreciation, Shares Struggles Behind Academic Success

The Overall Best Graduating Student of Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), Oladepo Caleb Olugbenga, has spoken out following reactions to his public appreciation of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), saying his gratitude was sincere and rooted in personal experience.

In a statement released after his convocation, Caleb said the wave of congratulatory messages, life-changing offers, and criticism that followed his NELFUND appreciation post made it necessary for him to clarify his position.

According to him, he grew up in a village in Osun State in a modest family of five, where attending public primary and secondary schools was not a matter of choice but necessity, as even the cheapest private schools were unaffordable.

He revealed that basic survival, including food and clothing, was often a daily struggle, while he had to walk long distances to school as his parents worked multiple jobs to support the family.

Caleb said for nine years before gaining admission into the university, his family lived without electricity or television, relying only on lanterns and candles despite living close to basic amenities.
Despite the hardship, he earned a scholarship and eventually emerged as the university’s overall best graduating student.

He also recounted how, in his third year, the father of a coursemate he had once tutored gifted him his first smartphone, which he still uses, while some lecturers supported him with clothing and other necessities during difficult periods.

“Not all of us are born with a silver spoon. Some of us climbed the ladder by holding on to every rung of legitimate support we could find,” he said.

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As an engineering student determined to make academic history, Caleb said he chose not to allow financial hardship to define his future, stressing that support systems like NELFUND played a major role in helping him stay on course.

“For me personally, NELFUND was not incidental; it was instrumental. To acknowledge what helped one’s journey is neither propaganda nor misplaced allegiance. It is simply an act of appreciation,” he stated.

He thanked NELFUND and everyone who contributed to his success, expressing optimism that greater achievements lie ahead.