A man who gained admission into the University of Benin (UNIBEN) after writing O'Level exams 17 times, has narrated the sacrifices his widowed mother made to see him through school.

Emmanuel Oluwasayomi Ahmadu, the second of five children of Mrs. Esther Ahmadu, said he wrote SSCE 17 times in 5 years because he wanted to pass on his own without cheating.

The examinations he sat for in 5 years included WAEC, NECO, NABTEB, NECO GCE and JAMB.

On 16th July 2020, Emmanuel completed his National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme in Kwara State with several awards and recommendations bagged for his selfless service to schools in the state.

He has also received international awards and recently represented Nigeria in Bangladesh, India, on 28th July, 2020 via Google Meet virtual conference along side Indian Professors and Mental Health Advocates, where he spoke on “Suicide Prevention” as an offshoot of the Covid-19 pandemic.

After he completed his NYSC, Emmanuel visited his mother’s house to thank her for the sacrifices she made in years past.

Emmanuel told BBC News that his mother was his rock when he was sitting for numerous exams to gain university admission. 

He said: “My mom has been the one God used in sponsoring majority of my enrollments throughout the 16 primary schools, 14 secondary schools and the entire 17 O’level examination attempts, including the University Matriculation Examinations (UME) I wrote 5 times.

“As shocking as it may appear, my mom spent virtually all her salaries thereby neglecting her personal needs as a School Teacher, she borrowed money from people, engaged in all types of petty businesses shamelessly and sometimes went the extra mile to obtain bank loan just to sponsor my enrollments and education and that of my other siblings. She trained us in God’s way from childhood and she never gave up on any of her children despite opposing tides and societal challenges. She encouraged us all the way, she will always say, 'don’t be tired, all will become well'."