NO RETREAT NO SURRENDER; NO AMOUNT OF THREAT AND INTIMIDATION CAN USURP OUR RESOLVED TO RETURN LAUTECH BACK TO THE ECHELON OF GREATNESS

#fundLAUTECH Update: The Journey So Far (Facts & Figures)

When #fundLAUTECH initiative was unveiled on June 12, 2017, we pledged to ensure that the fund raising effort is very transparent and we committed to give a review of our efforts periodically. We believe this will raise the bar concerning public accountability and probity and possibly bring back the much needed trust into our national life. Consequently, this update will address the following key issues:
1. Fund raising achievements so far.
2. Alternative and Traditional Media Engagements
3. Ancillary Efforts

MAJOR HIGHLIGHTS OF FUND RAISING EFFORTS

The first donor was Mr Ijaya Opeyemi Babatunde. As at June 30, 2017, we have had 86 different donations broken down as follows:
Internet/Online Banking Transfers- 76
Cheque Lodgments- 4
Cash Deposits into Account- 6
GROSS TOTAL- 86
The cleared balance as at June 30, 2017 is N4,219,089.15. Please find below a further analysis of the amount raised so far:
N200- 1 person
N500- 1 person
N1,000- 32 people
N2,000- 13 people
N2,500- 1 person
N4,000- 1 person
N4,300- 1 person
N5,000- 17 people
N10,000- 6 people
N20,000- 4 people
N30,000- 1 person
N50,000- 1 person
N100,000- 1 person
N644,589.15- 1 person
N1m- Fund Lautech Initiators
N2m- 1 person

Cleared Balance Total as at June 30, 2017- N4,219,089.15 (Four Million, Two Hundred and Nineteen Thousand and Eighty Nine Naira and Fifteen Kobo Only).
We have 2 cheques in clearing viz N250,000 and N500,000 respectively. Total balance in clearing is N750,000 (Seven Hundred and Fifty Thousand Naira Only).
We have the following outstanding pledges yet to be redeemed:
1. N1m pledge by the Accord Party Oyo House of Assembly members
2. N250,000 balance of the pledge by the Ooni of Ife, His Imperial Majesty Oba Adeyeye Enitan-Ogunwusi
3. Five (5) months pension by His Excellency, Senator Rasheed Adewolu Ladoja.
Total pledge yet to be redeemed is N4,472,945.75
SUMMARY OF DONATION
Current balance- N4,219,089.15
Cheques in Clearing-N750,000
Pledges yet to be redeemed- N4,472,945.75
GROSS TOTAL- N9,442,034.90

Please note that the names of all donors are fully indicated on the crowd funding website www.fundlautech.com (except express instruction to remain anonymous is given). We urge the general public to please visit the website to check their names. We hereby make an open call to any member of the public who made a donation and cannot find his/her name on the website to raise an alarm.

It will be trite to mention at this juncture that all expenses incurred on this initiative (fuel, transport, logistics, T-shirts, website, press, hotels, printed materials and other out-of-pocket expenses) have been funded solely by us. No one is sponsoring us neither are we affiliated to any political party. We have not taken a single dime from the donation to fund any expense. Our philosophy is that of the revered John F. Kennedy, "Ask not what your alma mata can do for you but ask what you can do for your alma mata".

ALTERNATIVE AND TRADITIONAL MEDIA ENGAGEMENTS

By deploying technology platforms, the #fundLAUTECH initiative has expanded the conversation around LAUTECH beyond the immediate academic community. The whole world is now aware of the LAUTECH conundrum.
Available Social Data Intelligence (SDI) depicts that across all media i.e. News, blogs, forums, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Pinterest, Broadcast and Print between Monday June 12 when we formally unveiled the initiative and Friday June 30, #fundLAUTECH was able to reach an audience of 14.3m people. On Twitter alone, #fundLAUTECH got 23,255 mentions and 12,700 engagements within 18 days. The #fundLAUTECH website alone has attracted 46,505 views since June 12. That is an average of 2,500 views per day. The coverage of these statistics spans Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, Oceania and South America.

The #fundLAUTECH team has also been interviewed by the following stations:
Oodua FM in Ile-Ife, Osun State
Splash FM, Ibadan - about 5 different times.
AIT Ilorin- Phone-in Live Interview
Fresh FM, Ibadan- Call-in Live Interview
Ajilete FM, Ogbomoso
Parrot FM
Faaji FM, Lagos
Lead Radio, Ibadan
Lagelu FM, Ibadan
One of the major highlights is that our efforts led to the recent dedication of one hour by Channels TV Sunrise Daily to the issue of LAUTECH just last Monday.
We are grateful to the entire public for joining this conversation. We also thank all the print, radio and TV journalists who have assisted us in this bid to reposition our alma mata as a patriotic duty. We believe with this, solution is in sight.

ANCILLARY EFFORTS

We have met with various interests groups such as the Parents Forum and Federation of Ibadan Students Union among others. We have also visited very eminent personalities such as His Imperial Majesty, the Arole Oodua and the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan-Ogunwusi, Ojaja II, His Excellency, Senator Rasheed Adewolu Ladoja, Mr Yinka Afonja, businessman and proprietor of Ace Supermarket and clergy men among others. One major thing we have been doing beyond fund raising is to leverage on our social capital to reach out to important individuals and critical stakeholders that can facilitate the reopening of LAUTECH within the shortest possible time.
We are so grateful to His Imperial Majesty, The Ooni of Ife for accepting to be the Chairman of the Board of Trustees. We believe his oversight will be required in order to keep focus on transparency and accountability. The Board will authorize and supervise all disbursements. We are also very sincerely grateful to the President of our National Alumni Association, Babajide Bewaji for his invaluable support for this project. We cannot but salute LAUTECH Defenders, a bunch of motivated and energetic people who are dedicated to seeing the glory days back again.

We acknowledge the critics of this initiative and recognize their submissions as feedback. We quite understand that not everyone will agree with this project. We also agree that anyone in disagreement is within their rights to do so. If everybody is thinking alike, then somebody isn't thinking. We must continue to encourage healthy debates so ideas can be fine tuned and we can all be better for it.

We are not unaware of some smear campaigns going on. Our response is never to wrestle with a pig. You'll both get dirty and the pig likes it. We'll rather keep focus and hereby call on everyone to come up with their initiatives to get our alma mata out of the doldrums. What we need urgently are ideas- imperfect as they may seem. A weak idea properly executed is far better than a perfect idea next week. The fate of over 32,000 students is at stake and this is a higher and more critical consideration than petty and pedestrian outbursts. What we need most is moral courage. Unfortunately, even though this is the most valuable, it is the most absent characteristic in men.
We knew what we were getting into when we rolled out this initiative. We knew we would ruffle feathers- and certainly we did. We knew we would be threatened and yes, we have been threatened. We knew there would be intimidation but we remain undaunted. We knew our persons will be maligned but we are too focused to be distracted. There will always be opposition to every position. We counted the cost before we started and we are fully prepared to go the whole hog- until LAUTECH is re-opened and the great citadel of learning regains her lost glory. That is our single objective.

We salute all donors so far and reassure you of utmost transparency in this task. We are sincerely grateful to the person who donated the sum of N200 (Two Hundred Naira). That is one donation that tugged at our heart strings. We have called on the judgment of God to fall on anyone who misappropriates or embezzles the funds raised- including their generations. We are reminded of the curse of Joshua in Joshua Chapter 6 verse 26: "And Joshua adjured them at that time, saying, Cursed be the man before the Lord, that riseth up and buildeth this city Jericho: he shall lay the foundation thereof in his firstborn, and in his youngest son shall he set up the gates of it".

We are reminded of its fulfillment in 1 Kings 16: 34: "In his days did Hiel the Bethelite build Jericho: he laid the foundation thereof in Abiram his firstborn, and set up the gates thereof in his youngest son Segub, according to the word of the Lord, which he spake by Joshua the son of Nun". So shall it be in Jesus Name.

Our target is scary but the real hero is the man who fights even though he's scared. We are open to donations from all and sundry irrespective of party, affiliation, gender, tribe or other considerations. We do not discriminate in any form. Also, please note that we do not accept cash donations. All gifts should either be via transfers directly to the account stated below only or by cheque issued in favour of FUND LAUTECH.

FUND LAUTECH
FIDELITY BANK- 5620082723
Thank you.