In academics, it’s either you publish or perish —Dr Helen Komolafe-Opadeji, UI Librarian

Dr. Helen Komolafe-Opadeji, the third female out of the six librarians that the University of Ibadan has had since the Kenneth Dike Library was established, holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Religious Study and a Master’s in Library Studies from the University of Ibadan. She obtained her Ph.D. in Library Studies from Babcock University, Ilisan-Remo, Ogun State. In this interview by TAYO GESINDE, she speaks about her connection with books, the challenges she faced at the beginning of her career and how she has been combining her career with the home front.

What informed your choice of career?

I had a stint with the Sketch Newspaper and I loved it but my parents felt it would be too tasking for a woman to be away all the time from home. I wasn’t married then but they were able to project into the future and because I loved reading, they saw that it was likely I would carve out a career for myself as a journalist. The little period I spent in Sketch, I had a column where I was writing poems under the tutelage of the late Nosa Osaigbovo. After I had been thoroughly convinced that I might not be able to be a journalist, I decided to study Language Arts but my point couldn’t allow me to be admitted for that course. I went to the admission office and was advised to pick any other course that suits me in the Faculty of Art. I had the best grade in Religious Studies; probably because I had praying parents so I decided to go for it. After reading Religious Studies, I came in for a Master’s Degree in Librarianship and became an academic Librarian. I had always loved reading, I like books.

When you started out as a librarian, what was the challenge you faced?

In the academic world, it is either you publish or perish. I stumbled on several occasions because writing papers was not something you just get into. Somebody who had done it for a while has to put you through. I didn’t find it too easy but eventually, I found solace in somebody who was ready to help me and that was Professor Wilson Ayepekun who happened to be a friend of my late uncle. My papers were too poetic and they were being sent back to me. That was quite demoralising because I had conditioned my mind that I will be a prolific writer. I realised that when you are writing about social activity, it is quite different from when you are carrying out empirical research work and you have to put it into a paper. You must be factual and not use the flowery language that I have been so used to. Professor Ayepekun was able to guide me through but for the first three years, I never had a publication to my name, not one. He was able to put me through, he gave me books to read and that guided my eventual understanding of how to write academic papers.

What do you find to be the most interesting aspect of your job?

I am a bit shy so, when I got here, I found solace in just being myself and reading. What I find to be most interesting is the connection I have with books. My mum was a teacher and was so overprotective of us. She went out of her way to get us on our toes through reading so we all love to read. My brother eventually became a journalist. He is an editor with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN). My mum would read and we dared not disturb her though what she was reading was usually  novels. Seeing her read all the time and not being able to make noise in the house, we just had to key in to it as well. At a point in time, the book seller in our area was feeding fat on our income because he would always inform us whenever he had new stock. I enjoyed reading growing up and it is a little bit appalling when I see children who don’t read.

How did you get to meet your husband and what is the secret of your success in marriage?

My husband and I were mates and he happens to be a very quiet person. For years, he didn’t even know how to woo me. He will just come to our house to say hi until one day, my dad asked me what his intention was and I told him I didn’t know and he said he would find out from him.  We are still the best of friends. He is a lecturer in this institution. To be factual, it has just been the grace of God. I can’t say I have done anything special to see me through. The grace of God has been more than sufficient and I have a husband who believes so much in me and who gives me all his support. He can tolerate my inadequacies and I have plenty of them. He is highly tolerant. We both believe strongly in the power of prayer. The bottom line is grace and mercy.

How have you been able to combine the home front with your career?

My mother was there for the family through thick and thin. I lost her about ten years ago. She was a rare mum, a wonderful woman. She was always shuttling between her home and ours (my sister and I). Also being a princess from Okuku, she used to bring people who need to be educated to stay with us and assist us at home while we give them education. The fact that I close at four also makes it easy to combine the home front with my career.

What has been your experience since you became the Librarian?

I have been here since 2016, initially it wasn’t very easy. It was tough. It was rough because I didn’t cut my career teeth in Kenneth Dike Library but in the subsidiary library; the medical library, College of Medicine, University Teaching Hospital (UCH), lbadan. The acceptability wasn’t there and there were some political innuendos that a woman of my character might have failed to see. After being baptised, left, right and centre, I sat down and entrusted all into God’s hands because I was tired of fighting battles. I then had peace. I never knew it could be as easy as it is now. After some months, I learnt the boardroom game. One needs it before getting to this position; how to let go of some things, how to put your feet down and say no.

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What are some of the achievements you have recorded since you came on board?

There are so many. We have made the Library to be an inviting reading environment to attract students to come in and read. We also took the library to them by training them and courting them through the faculty libraries so that we can revive the reading culture among the youth. We are practising embedded librarianship; we are showing interest in what they are doing and assisting them to do it. Within a short period we saw the counters rising, people were visiting the library particularly the reference section. We have also paid so much attention to ensuring that the resources we have are up-to-date. I make bold to say that we have 2018 editions of scholarly books, academics books. That has increased the traffic. The administration of Professor Olayinka has also encouraged me to go the whole hog to subscribe to electronic data bases. In the Library, we have subscribed to more than 15 data bases. There is also a Nigeriana section where we have books written by Nigerian authors about the Nigeria situations.  Capacity building is another area we have given priority to; our staffs are being sent on training outside the country. Finally, our 24/7 library or reading room has just been concluded and it will be commissioned anytime from now by the vice chancellor. That means readers can come in anytime of the day to read books.

What is the most defining moment of your career?

It was when I was invited to vie for this position and was eventually chosen to be the head of the library system. I didn’t see it coming so soon. It was quite rewarding. I was elated. It was like, so this is how God works! It was quite humbling and the most defining moment of my life so, I can’t afford not to perform.

What advice do you have for young women?

We must be focused. We must learn how to multi-task, lead by example and learn to be prayerful. That saw me through to this level and I have already inculcated the same values in my children. Parents must be prayerful; we can’t do anything outside of God. It is important to guide our children through the word of God.

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