Eavesdroppers Never Hear Good of Themselves
The story I�m about to relay happened in Grier House in the mid sixties.
Our dear old Housemaster, Mr. Arodudu of blessed memory, who was also our English teacher, was very fond of prowling round his domain (Grier House) after lights-out, like a sleek tiger looking for unruly students to punish.
He had carried on with this tactic for a long time, and a lot of Grier House boys had fallen into his trap on several occasions. The inevitable
punishment was some strokes from the rod of ..... Read More
2017 GCIOBANA ENDO : LAS VEGAS CONVENTION
Dr Adeola Olatunji Popoola - a Physical Therapy Specialist in New Jersey and Executive Chairman of GCIOBA-North America Branch discusses with Mrs Joy Adedeji of New African Broadcasting Network TV Station.
In the Video Interview transcribed by the GCI Museum Team, the 1971 Set Old Boy of Government College Ibadan related how the Branch's forthcoming grand breaking ENDO at Las Vegas, Nevada would be a panacea for the dismal abysmal state of education in not only his Alma ..... Read More
The GCI Story
Sir' I asked 'do you mean Government College Ibadan?' the old professor looked into my eyes with incredulity and snapped 'Is there any other GCI'? Though there exist many schools using this acronym today. With this sense of nostalgia and awe do old students and friends talk about and celebrate this great school.
Founded February 28, 1929, Government College Ibadan (GCI) is a "boys only" secondary school located in Ibadan, modelled after the British secondary boarding schools of the era. The ..... Read More
Manna from the HSC Block Ceiling
MANNA FROM THE HSC BLOCK CEILING - THE FREE MILK AFFAIR.
My relationship with all my classmates was cordial, but that with three of them, Adenrele Daramola, Tunde Oremodu and Tolu Osonowo, was outstanding.
I recall playing football in my second year, with Denrele in the open porch of the HSC Block.
One of us kicked the ball into the ceiling and Denrele volunteered to go into the ceiling and retrieve it. He brought down the ball all right, but he also told us about a carton of ..... Read More
'Cum' was a Life Saver
Nobody toyed with 'cum' in Government College Ibadan.
Cum was the Saturday evening combo meal of fried plantain and beans (dodo and ewa) and it was everybody's delight.
'Cum' made my life a lot easier in my early days at GCI, after leaving the comfort of Corona School, Lagos, which many considered an 'aje-butter' institution.
I resumed at Apata in January 1967, and so, that aspect of my life's journey began. I was assigned to Grier House.
Taking up residence in the boarding house, ..... Read More
These terms called 'AYO' and 'AIONIAN'.
AIONIAN is the brotherhood of four schools formed in 1930 by the founding Principals of Abeokuta Grammar School, Ibadan Grammar School, Ondo Boys High School, and Ijebu Ode Grammar School.
AIONIAN was formed by combining the first letters of the schools, and was for the purpose of conducting joint annual sports competitions and entrance examinations.
The initial four schools later became twelve.
None of these ionian (ayo) schools played elite sports like cricket and hockey, and did not ..... Read More
Osemeikhian or Oshinyimika
By the rules and regulations of Government College Ibadan, students were barred from going into the teachers' quarters, but as they say 'boys must be boys'.
A combination of normal youthful exuberance and some spurt of testosterone in the blood of young boys emboldened some group of students, notable amongst whom were Segun Oshinyimika (1965), Biodun Sadipe (1965), Late Yomi Agboola (1965), Derin Adewumi (1962) and a host of others to break this rule.
It was a kind of 'huckleberryfinic' ..... Read More
Conversation between an Old Boy and an Old School Teacher of GCI
Teacher: What are you doing here?
Student: I'm a student sir.
Teacher: 'Ha-ha! Student where? At the university?'
Student: Yes sir!
Teacher: That's the same place I'm going. And what are you studying?'
Student: 'Engineering sir!' Chemical Engineering!!'
Teacher: 'Oh...I see! How did you get here? And for how long?'
Student: 'I gained admission sir. Just completed my first year.'
Teacher: 'Ha, you GCI boys. You are everywhere. I must send a message to MA in Ibadan. Do you ..... Read More
Two Kids - A Reminiscence Of GCI
(from the novel A Conference in Ennui by Rotimi Ogunjobi , 2012)
It was an old school, about forty years old. Their dormitory, one of the nine in the house, seemed just as old with un-tiled concrete floor and creosote blackened window frames and roof trusses. A wider adventure around the school grounds would later reveal about a million acres of lawns and sport fields, miles and miles of planted Casuarina hedges, or so it appeared to the little kids. The school grounds also had within it a ..... Read More
The Provincial Athletics Championships: An Event I'd Rather Not Remember
It was some sometime in April 1971 at the Provincial Athletics Championships competition at the Liberty Stadium in Ibadan.
The competition was coming to an end and as usual, it was time for the relay race, which is always the highlight of the championships. The GCI team comprised Eniola Sanu (1967) - the first leg, Tunde Bamgbelu (1968) - second leg, my good self - third leg and Yato Adeyemi, the anchor.
The race started very well with fantastic and beautiful baton exchanges from the ..... Read More