Professor Wahab Olasupo Egbewole (SAN) is an outstanding personality who earned his place in life through humility, candour and studiousness. As the incumbent Vice Chancellor of the University of Ilorin (Unilorin), Egbewole has perhaps fashioned his life after the motto of this citadel of learning –  Probitas Doctrinal (Learning and Character).
  
Born 63 years ago (December 26, 1961) in Ile-Ife, Osun State, this son of a peasant farmer earned his Bachelor’s degree in Law (LL.B) in 1984 from University of Ife, now Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, and proceeded immediately to the Nigerian Law School, Lagos, after which he was called to the Nigerian Bar as a Solicitor and an Advocate of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.
  
A cerebral personality couched inside a medium frame that could have wrongly depicted his strength as an intellectual colossus, Egbewole was about two years ago enlisted among the very few great minds that have so far emerged as the vice chancellors of the university.
  
His predecessors were Prof. Ladipo Akinkugbe (1975–1978), Prof. A. O. Adesola (1978–1981), Prof. S. A. Toye (1981–1984), Prof. A. Adeniyi (1985–1992), Prof. J.O Oyinloye (1992–1997), Prof. S. O. Abdulraheem (1997–2002), Prof. S. O. Amali (2002–2007), Prof. I. O. Oloyede (2007–2012), Prof. A. G. Ambali (2012–2017) and Prof. Sulyman Age Abdulkareem (2017–2022).
  
Until Egbewole’s  emergence as the 13th Vice Chancellor of the ivory tower located on a sprawling land endowed with multifaceted  geographic features, he had restricted most of his activities to Ilorin, the capital town of Kwara State,  where he also practised as a barrister and solicitor.
  As an expert in International Law and Jurisprudence, Egbewole had featured in many governorship and presidential election petitions cases. In most of the cases, he was listed among the eggheads in the legal team assembled by Yusuf Ola-Olu Ali (SAN) of the famous Ghalib Chambers in Ilorin. His level of advocacy, though grossly under-reported by the media, is meticulously captured in many Case Laws in Nigeria.
  
Expectedly, when the list of those vying for the seat of the vice chancellor of Unilorin was made public, Egbewole was not given any slightest chance by bookmakers. This was not due to any deficiency on his part, anyway; but he was “relatively unknown”.  So, when his appointment was announced by the Director of Information of the university, Mr. Kunle Akogun, the question, “who is this Egbewole” rented the air.
  
However, many were quick to recall that at the heat of the crisis that rocked the university during the administration of Prof. Abdulraheem, which led to the sack of 49 members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Egbewole emerged the branch chairman of the union. Backed by the national body of the union, the lecturers were eventually reinstated after a prolonged legal battle that was eventually decided by the Supreme Court. This is not an attempt to exhume an issue that has been condemned to the dustbin of the history of the university, but to give honour to Egbewole who directed the affairs of the union during that troubling period.  
 
As a labour activist, he knew that the battle would one day come to an end. He saw it as a battle between brothers of common destinies. Therefore, his style of leadership was to ‘fight’ the supposed ‘enemies’ of the management with care and caution. He indeed spared the proverbial sledge hammer during the period under a review. Today, he is a great beneficiary of the now united union.
  
Married with children, Egbewole gave out one of his daughters in a marriage a few months ago at a grand event in Ilorin that was attended by the crème-de-la-crème of Nigeria, including the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister for Justice, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN).
 
As a lecturer of Law, Egbewole has a simplified teaching methodology that had over the years endeared him to many of his students, including this writer. An ever smiling personality, he would not miss his class and would often break down seemingly complex legal topics to the admiration of members of his students. Many students of Law from the university found his lectures useful at the Nigeria Law School. He would neither come late to class nor exceed the time allotted for his lectures. And his students would always say that, “you will have to try hard to fail Egbewole’s courses.” He is however not generous with marks. His simplicity of diction and gesticulations during lectures some two decades ago still remain indelible till date in our memories.
  
As  a vice chancellor, this great Nigerian is easily accessible to both the town and the gown till date. His modest but well-equipped chamber –Nimah –, at Oko-Erin, apparently christened after his mother, Nimota, has no clumsy protocols to access him. Even at the sixth floor of the administrative building of the University of Ilorin where the office of the vice chancellor is located, Egbewole avails himself to visitors.
 
He knows the private residences of more than two-third of his principal staff. Besides, unless when not invited, he will always be present, not by proxy, at noble events of his principal staff; an uncommon attribute that has gone down well with the people of the town. However, it will be a misplacement of diction to label this birthday celebrant as a socialite.