Nigerian king builds school with no school fees, free hostel & food

Do you know this school? Abolarin College in Oke-Ila, Osun State. The students there pay NO school fees; enjoy free hostel, free food, free internet, free uniform, free laptop for every child, and 24-hour power supply; and all these expenses are paid by the town’s king. What is the most shocking is that the king teaches too in the School.

What makes this school remarkable is that one major criterion for getting admitted in is being poor. If your parents are rich, you cannot gain admission. Unlike other schools, Abolarin College wants poor kids who are very brilliant. If you are poor but brilliant, the king will admit you!

The king believes poor brilliant kids should also be given an equal opportunity to become something in life – so that the future does not belong only to those born with a silver spoon in their mouth. The king himself has a law degree and master’s in law.

From what we gathered, the king has only one wife. Obviously, he is not using the money of the kingdom to accumulate wives or properties; instead he is investing it in the education of future leaders while he aims to reduce the burden of illiteracy in the society. For him, it doesn’t matter the religion; it is not about nepotism, neither is it restricted to Yoruba children nor only children from Oke Ila; it is about any less-privileged child anywhere who is willing to be educated. That is why the only criteria for admission is poverty and brilliance.

Many of those kids previously hawked pepper, sachet water, fruits etc. Some came from farms where all they did was work under the hot sun weeding and planting. Many are orphans, hawkers, child labourers, delinquents, children of petty traders, but now they have hope, and not just hope, a future.

All across history, change begins with just a man! Dare to live differently, making an impact. It is what we do with money and our other resources that counts, for money has no value in itself!

This man is planting seeds that will blossom in the future. In the nearest years, that town will be filled with successful and accomplished people. I love this. God bless the King. This is one man that fully has my respect. We should celebrate such a Nigerian! This king is a legend and posterity will never forget him. Orangun of Oke-Ila and Ila.

In Oke-Ila Orangun one of the twin sister-kingdoms, and capital of Ifedayo Local Government area of Osun State, the current Orangun is Oba Adedokun Omoniyi Abolarin. He is from the Obasolo Ruling House, one of the four ruling houses among which the title rotates in Oke-Ila Orangun.