Who will sell his house to build an auditorium for a public university? Who would have been that selfless but a man who sees that your wealth is not meant for you alone, but also for your immediate environment? Someone who believes the famous quotes of the late American Catholic religious sister, Mary Rose McGhie, who says, “There is no greater joy, nor greater reward than to make a fundamental difference in someone’s life.”
When he turned 60 in 2021, Tunji Bello pledged to the management and students of the Lagos State University (LASU) to donate to the school a world-class auditorium, not just a hall but an architectural masterpiece that would make many green with envy.
To achieve this, he rallied friends, converted birthday gifts into donations, but the dream to execute the project was threatened by a lack of funds. The former Lagos commissioner did what many would think twice before doing; he sacrificed his multimillion-naira property for the purpose by selling his house in the highbrow area of Magodo, Lagos.
What a selfless individual he is!
Last week, the auditorium was inaugurated at the Epe Campus of the university.
Tunji Bello’s life is a study in purposeful evolution. A journalist, lawyer, environmentalist, and public servant, he has worn many hats – but always with the same thread of integrity. From his early days at Concord Press to his tenure as Lagos State Commissioner for Environment, and now as Executive Vice Chairman of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), Bello has consistently stood on the side of the public interest.
At FCCPC, he has taken on digital loan sharks, price gougers, and monopolistic cartels with the same fervour he brought to LASU. His mantra is clear: governance must protect the vulnerable, and leadership must be anchored in empathy. Under his watch, FCCPC has become a bulwark against economic feudalism, ensuring that consumers are not crushed under the weight of exploitative practices.
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