A photograph attributed to a visit by Dr Victor Omololu Olunloyo to Ilesa Grammar School around 1968 recalls an important period in the history of secondary education in Western Nigeria.
According to the account accompanying the photograph, Olunloyo, then Western State Commissioner for Education, stood before a row of teachers during a visit to the institution in Ilesa, now in Osun State, Nigeria.
Two individuals are identified in the accompanying family account. The first person from the left is named as Niyi Fakulujo, a teacher who reportedly became a colonel in the Nigerian Army and Commandant of the Nigerian Military School, Zaria. The third person is identified as John Obasola Omole, who reportedly pursued a later career in book publishing.
Their stories place the photograph within a broader history of Nigerian education, public administration and the professional opportunities available to teachers during the decades following independence.
Ilesa Grammar School: An Institution Founded in 1934
The history of Ilesa Grammar School began long before Nigeria achieved independence in 1960.
The institution was established through the efforts of Egbe Atunluse Ile Ijesa, the Ijesa Improvement Society, an organisation committed to the development of Ijesaland.
According to the school’s old students’ association, the campaign for a secondary school gained momentum on 9 April 1924, when Dr Oguntola Sapara proposed that the society should place greater emphasis on educational matters concerning Ijesaland.
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The society subsequently pursued the establishment of a school, securing support from local leaders and making arrangements for its administration.
On 18 January 1934, a competitive entrance examination was conducted for prospective pupils. Twenty-one boys were admitted.
Informal classes commenced on 29 January 1934, followed by the formal opening of the school on 5 February 1934.
The Reverend E. C. Doherty served as its founding principal, while E. O. Lucas was appointed as its founding tutor.
The school’s establishment demonstrated the importance of community initiatives in expanding access to secondary education in colonial Nigeria. Local organisations, traditional authorities and educational professionals contributed to the development of an institution that would serve successive generations of students.
By 1968, the school had been operating for more than three decades.
Why Ilesa Grammar School Had a Different Name in 1968
Although the institution is widely recognised as Ilesa Grammar School, its history includes a period during which it operated under another name.
According to the school’s alumni historical records, the institution was known as Ijesa Comprehensive High School between 1965 and 1978.
The original name, Ilesa Grammar School, was subsequently restored.
The photograph attributed to Olunloyo’s visit belongs to this period in the institution’s history.
The school’s changing name reflects an important chapter in its development and its place within the evolving educational landscape of Western Nigeria.
Throughout these changes, the institution retained its connection with the community initiative that brought it into existence in 1934.
Western State and Nigeria’s Educational Administration in 1968
The photograph belongs to a period of substantial political and administrative change in Nigeria.
Following the military takeover of January 1966, the country’s governmental structure underwent further reorganisation.
On 27 May 1967, the Federal Military Government under Major General Yakubu Gowon announced the creation of twelve states, replacing Nigeria’s previous four-region structure.
Western State succeeded the former Western Region, excluding the territory incorporated into the newly established Lagos State.
Consequently, Olunloyo’s educational office in 1968 was that of Western State Commissioner for Education.
His responsibilities belonged to an administration operating under military government rather than the civilian regional government of Nigeria’s First Republic.
The period also coincided with the Nigerian Civil War, which began in July 1967 and ended in January 1970.
During these years, state governments continued to exercise responsibilities for public administration, including the organisation and supervision of education.
The photograph associated with Olunloyo’s visit to Ilesa forms part of this wider history of educational administration during a period of national political and military upheaval.
Dr Victor Omololu Olunloyo and His Educational Career
Dr Victor Omololu Olunloyo was a mathematician and public administrator whose career included several government and educational appointments.
Born on 14 April 1935, he studied mathematics and obtained a doctorate from the University of St Andrews in Scotland.
In 1962, at the age of 27, he became a commissioner in the Western Region under the administration of Dr Moses Majekodunmi.
He subsequently held several commissioner appointments, including responsibilities for education, during the military administration of Western State under Colonel Robert Adeyinka Adebayo.
Olunloyo’s career combined academic work with public administration, a background that informed his involvement in educational affairs.
In a retrospective account published by TheCable on 7 April 2025, journalist Bunmi Makinwa recalled Olunloyo’s reputation during the late 1960s for visiting secondary schools, examining their operations and questioning teachers and principals about their performance.
These recollections illustrate the attention associated with Olunloyo’s approach to educational administration.
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His subsequent educational appointments included leadership positions at The Polytechnic, Ibadan, and Kwara State Polytechnic.
He later served as Governor of the old Oyo State in 1983.
Olunloyo died on 6 April 2025, shortly before his 90th birthday.
His career forms part of the history of the relationship between higher education, public administration and political leadership in post-independence Nigeria.
Secondary Education in Western State During the Late 1960s
Educational administration in Western State during the late 1960s involved discussions about curriculum development, school organisation and the relationship between secondary education and employment.
In 1969, the Western State Ministry of Education published a report documenting a conference of secondary-school principals and ministry officials held at Adeyemi College of Education, Ondo, between 17 and 20 July 1968.
The 134-page publication included discussions concerning secondary-school curricula and business education.
The conference illustrates the attention given to educational planning during the period associated with Olunloyo’s visit to Ilesa.
Secondary schools were responsible not only for preparing pupils for examinations but also for providing educational foundations for employment, higher education and professional development.
Teachers occupied an important position within this system, helping to prepare young Nigerians for opportunities in different sectors of national life.
The professional journeys associated with the reported photograph reflect some of the directions that educated Nigerians pursued during the decades following independence.
Niyi Fakulujo and the Nigerian Military School
One of the individuals identified in the accompanying family account is Niyi Fakulujo, reportedly the first teacher from the left in the photograph.
According to the account, Fakulujo subsequently pursued a military career, attaining the rank of colonel in the Nigerian Army and serving as Commandant of the Nigerian Military School, Zaria.
The Nigerian Military School’s official command chronology records that Colonel A. Fakulujo held the position of Commandant between September 1985 and October 1990.
The Nigerian Military School, established in 1954, occupies an important place in Nigeria’s military educational history.
Its commandants have been responsible for the leadership and administration of the institution during different periods of its development.
The career associated with Fakulujo connects the photograph’s account of secondary education with the wider history of military training and leadership in Nigeria.
John Obasola Omole and His Reported Career in Publishing
The third person from the left is identified in the accompanying family account as John Obasola Omole.
According to the account, Omole was a member of the school’s teaching staff who subsequently pursued a career in book publishing.
His reported professional journey draws attention to the relationship between classroom education and the publishing industry.
Teachers and publishers occupied different but closely connected positions within Nigeria’s educational landscape.
While teachers delivered instruction, educational publishers contributed to the production and distribution of textbooks and other learning materials.
Omole’s reported transition from teaching into publishing places his personal story within this broader relationship between education and the development of professional publishing in Nigeria.
His story also highlights the different professional directions available to teachers whose experience and knowledge could be applied beyond the classroom.
The Historical Significance of the 1968 Photograph
The photograph attributed to Olunloyo’s visit brings together several strands of Nigeria’s educational history.
At its centre is an institution established through community initiative in 1934 and operating during a period of administrative change in the late 1960s.
It also recalls the educational responsibilities of a government commissioner whose career combined mathematics, academic administration and public service.
The accompanying identifications of Niyi Fakulujo and John Obasola Omole connect the reported occasion with two distinct professional paths, one associated with military education and the other with publishing.
The photograph’s significance therefore extends beyond the presence of a prominent public official.
It draws attention to the teachers who formed part of the educational institutions serving Nigerian communities during the decades following independence.
Their individual experiences contribute to a broader understanding of how classroom education, professional development and public institutions were connected in Nigeria’s history.
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Conclusion
The photograph attributed to Olunloyo at Ilesa Grammar School around 1968 recalls an important period in the development of secondary education in Western Nigeria.
The institution’s foundation in 1934, its subsequent period as Ijesa Comprehensive High School and Olunloyo’s service as Western State Commissioner for Education provide the historical setting for the reported encounter.
The accompanying accounts of Niyi Fakulujo and John Obasola Omole extend the story beyond the school itself, drawing attention to the wider professional lives associated with members of its teaching staff.
Together, these histories illustrate the connections between community education, government administration and the development of professional institutions in post-independence Nigeria.
Author’s Note
The story associated with Olunloyo’s visit to Ilesa Grammar School reminds us that the history of education is not written by prominent administrators alone. Behind every school are the community organisations that established it, the teachers who sustained its classrooms and the generations of students whose lives were shaped by their work. The history of Ilesa Grammar School demonstrates the lasting importance of community investment in education, while the careers associated with the photograph draw attention to the contributions teachers can make beyond the classroom. Preserving such stories helps future generations understand the people and institutions that contributed to Nigeria’s educational development.
References
Ilesa Grammar School Old Students’ Association. History of Ilesa Grammar School Old Students’ Association. Institutional historical account documenting the school’s foundation, early leadership and development.
ILEGRAMS. School History. Alumni historical record documenting the institution’s development and its period under the name Ijesa Comprehensive High School.
Nigerian Military School, Zaria. Chronicles of Command. Official institutional record of commandants, including Colonel A. Fakulujo’s appointment between September 1985 and October 1990.
Western State Ministry of Education. Report of a Conference of Principals and Ministry Officials on the Secondary School Curriculum: Held at the Adeyemi College of Education, Ondo Between 17th July, 1968 and 20th July, 1968. Ministry of Education, 1969.
University of St Andrews, MacTutor History of Mathematics. Victor Olunloyo (1935–2025). Biographical account of Olunloyo’s academic career and public appointments.
Makinwa, Bunmi. Encounters with Omololu Olunloyo. TheCable, 7 April 2025.
The State House, Abuja. President Tinubu Mourns the Passing of Former Oyo State Governor Omololu Olunloyo. 6 April 2025.
