The Chairman, Federal Civil Service Commission, Prof. Tunji Olaopa, has urged political science scholars to make their discipline relevant to the realities and struggles of modern life.

Olaopa spoke yesterday as the chairman at the opening ceremony of the 35th Conference of the Nigerian Political Science Association (NPSA) held at the University of Ibadan.

According to Olaopa, there is an urgent need to rebrand the discipline in ways that make its scholarship more public-facing and therefore accessible for engagement with politicians, policymakers, and other relevant stakeholders.

He said that this must necessarily transcend the usual town-and-gown partnerships to deeper, more critical connections that enable the co-production of political and policy knowledge.

“Such synergy enables the political science community to engage in collaborations with civil society organisations, grassroots movements, Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and other non-state actors in designing research frameworks and curricula contents for a shared understanding of the status and direction that give the discipline relevance and legitimacy,” he said.

Noting why the political science curriculum and pedagogical frameworks need to adapt to current and significant realities, like Artificial Intelligence (AI), Olaopa said: “AI today is increasingly challenging the way we conceive of research, pedagogy, and the implications of research for praxis.

“There is also the further challenge of reflecting on how the curriculum and pedagogy enable political science students and graduates to transition from theoretical instructions to work-integrated learning.”