Why Femi Otedola is passionate about St Augustine University

By Adetutu Audu

For billionaire businessman, Mr Femi Otedola, philanthropy is a second nature. In fact, most of Otedola’s philanthropic activities are never spoken about in public.

So long he betters the lives of the deserving, the billionaire businessman is contented. Little wonder his friends and associates call him ‘Baba Aláàánú’ — meaning the merciful one.

There is a chapter in Femi Otedola’s book, ‘Making It Big’, titled, ‘Be a Cheerful Giver’, where the story is told about how the late Otedola patriarch, Sir Michael Otedola, had allocated a piece of land to the Catholic Church and they wanted to build Augustine University. The Catholic Church had approached the billionaire businessman for support but at that time he had a debt of N220 billion hanging on his neck, so he could not support them.

The Epe-born billionaire said when they left he went to his room and cried. His words: “I was weeping because they had come with what I saw as an appeal from God. I beseeched God: ‘Give me another break. If you do I am going to build this school’. It was a vow that came from the depths of my soul”.
God answered Otedola’s prayer and he was able to give $1.4 million to build the university between 2004 and 2008.

Then he emerged the Chancellor of the institution. He recently donated the finished Block A of a multi-billion-naira Faculty of Engineering complex named after his mother, Lady Doja, to Augustine University.
Otedola also laid the foundation stone for phase 2 of the faculty complex, which he promised would be completed in not more than two years.

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