We studied hard not to beg for jobs – UI First Class twins in Law

Twin brothers, Taiye and Kehinde Adegoke, who both bagged a
First Class in Law at the University of Ibadan, Oyo State, talk
about how they achieved the feat with GBENGA ADENIJI

Tell us more about
yourself.

Taiye: I am a native of Ondo, Ondo State.
My twin brother and I are first of six children. My hobbies are
reading, singing, researching, watching and playing soccer. My
nickname is T.cent.

Kehinde: My friends call me K.cent. I
dislike people who lack focus. Our parents are Adeyinka Adegoke and
Omolade Adegoke. Our father lives in the United Kingdom while our
mother lives in Ondo. They are wonderful parents. But we grew up
with our paternal grandmother, Mrs Felicia Akinjagunla, in Ondo. We
love her dearly.

What formed your choice to both study
Law?

Taiye: We always wanted to study Law since
our 100 level days at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun
State. Let me say that we attended three universities in Nigeria
but graduated from two. In 2006, we gained admission to the
pre-degree programme of the Adekunle Ajasin University,
Akungba-Akoko, Ondo State.

We did it for a year, passed and got admitted into 100 level to
study History and International Studies. After 100 level, our
father insisted we leave AAUA because then, it was a relatively new
school. Thus, we took the Unified Tertiary Matriculation
Examination and went to the OAU for the same course. We eventually
graduated from OAU in January, 2013. Our love for Law was still
intense especially as we had roommates who studied Law while we
were at OAU. We wanted to also put on white-on-black attire. In 300
level, we both sat for the UTME and applied for Law at the
University of Ibadan.

I was admitted but my brother, Kehinde, was denied admission due
to the O’level points UI was using at the time. (Kehinde didn’t
have enough As in O’level even though he has many distinctions). I
was supposed to resume 100 level at UI when I was in 400 level in
OAU. I had to suspend the course in UI for a year for two reasons.
One, it was not possible to combine 100 level UI and 400 OAU, and
two, because my brother had yet to be admitted. My brother sat for
the UTME again the following year, and to the glory of God, he was
admitted.

Kehinde:  Whenever we saw law
students walking in groups, we got jealous and wanted to be like
them. They also acted like they were the only learned people around
and that those of us in other courses were ‘educated illiterates.’
Also, the way our lecturers addressed them with respect whenever
they came to take elective courses in our department always made us
envious of them. All these combined made us develop interest in
being a part of the ‘noble profession.’

What are the things you do differently individually
despite being an identical twin?

Taiye: We have never done anything
differently. We drove same car as our first car. But we never had
the same girlfriend (laughs).

Kehinde: To be honest, there is nothing we do
differently. We do almost everything in common. We attended the
same school from nursery, primary, secondary to university. We
support the same football club, Manchester United. We keep same
friends. We like and dislike the same type of food.

Did your classmates show surprise that you were both
studying same course?

Taiye: Maybe in 100 level, some of them
might have shown surprises; I’m not too sure. But later on, I don’t
think they were surprised. They were used to us anyway.

Kehinde: Not really. Although some of them
marvelled that we did the same course at OAU and at UI, but because
they see how closely knit we are, they were not surprised.

Did you study together?

Taiye: Studying together made our work
easier. That was why we didn’t attend group meetings or read in the
library. After studying, we would take turns to serve as a lecturer
for each other. We were bound to give same answers and usually got
same grades. I laughed when I read a comment on the Internet that
one of us, who is academically sound, could have possibly sat exams
for the other who may be academically weak. In fact, the
commentator urged the ICPC and UI authorities to look into our
examination scripts.

UI is a very strict and organised school. Everything is always
in order. Thus, the chances of exam malpractice or impersonation
are very slim. Again, we never sat together in exam hall. We were
always separated. But despite that, a lecturer, who painstakingly
marked our script, would most likely give us same grade because our
ideas would always be the same.

Kehinde: Yes, we did. We didn’t have
reading partners. And after reading, we would discuss on how to
tackle any question in the examination.

Yoruba cosmogony affirms that what appeals to Taiye
may not fascinate Kehinde as each individual has a separate
destiny. But this is untrue in your case as you are both in love
with same career. Why is this so?

Taiye: I can’t explain this expressly.
However, I believe it all boils down to the way we were brought up.
We’ve never been separated nor lived apart. We’ve always been
together. We do things together. I guess that informs why we love
the same thing including choosing same career.

Kehinde: It is because we have always been
doing things in common since we were young. Anywhere Taiye goes, I
follow and vice-versa. We sleep in the same room, watch same movies
and eat same food. In fact, our granny normally did one funny thing
when we were much younger. Whenever she prepared our meal, she
would compare the portions on the two plates to ensure that one was
not bigger than the other. We would then ask her, “Grandma, are you
God? It is only God that can share things equally.”

Also, when our father buys us things like clothes, shoes or
phones, he ensures they are exactly the same. This has helped us to
develop interest in similar things.

What grade did you graduate with?

Taiye: I graduated with a cumulative grade
point average of 6.1 on a scale of 7.0. This amounts to a First
Class.

Kehinde: To the glory of God, we both
graduated with a First Class honours in Law from the UI.

How do you feel with the feat?

Taiye: Honestly, I’m elated and excited.
Words cannot contain my feelings. Ever since we attained the feat,
we are being celebrated by everybody. We look like a genius. We
look special, like stars. We have been receiving congratulatory
calls and messages from both old-time and new friends. Everybody
wants to associate with us. To sum it up, I feel on top of the
world.

Kehinde: We feel very elated. It is not
easy to make a First Class at the UI, not to talk of two persons
from same parents in the same course.

Did you at anytime envisage such academic feat at
the end of your study?

Taiye: I have always envisaged it,
especially after our 200 level. My brother and I had always worked
towards it. We wanted to make history. We wanted our names to be
reckoned with. We wanted the world to celebrate us. We didn’t just
want to be the ordinary twins who went to the university and just
graduated. We wanted something more.

We didn’t want to have to beg or give a bribe before getting a
job. We wanted our efforts to open doors for us. We worked harder
and prayed towards achieving the goal. Thank God, through hard work
and prayers, we are eventually telling the success story.

Kehinde: We were already graduates from
the OAU then, and tired of reading. We just wanted to get LL.B and
become lawyers. That was why Taiye would become the public
relations officer of the Students’ Union in 200 level. I contested
both in 300 and 400 levels for the position of the Students’ Union
President. Though I didn’t win, on both occasions, I was a major
contender.

I was also a member of the Students’ Representative Council in
200 level. We devoted our time in UI to politics and didn’t
initially envisage bagging a First Class. However, the reality
dawned on us in 300 level when we found out that we maintained
First Class for three sessions despite our active involvement in
students’ politics. By this time, we felt it was a must for us to
make First Class because people on campus were already seeing us as
First Class students and we did not want to disappoint them.

Were you in competition to surpass each other
academically?

Taiye: Never! We never competed with
ourselves. We wanted the best for ourselves. In fact, I always
wanted Kehinde to score more than me in any test or examination.
Likewise, he wanted me always to score more than him. But we used
to challenge ourselves up to read. If one was reading, the other
was challenged to read too.

Kehinde: Not at all. We didn’t compete
with each other. Because we believe that whatever Taiye achieves
belongs to Kehinde and vice-versa. We just try to be the best
anywhere we find ourselves and in striving to be the best, we both
achieved excellent results.

Do you intend to marry identical female
twins? 

Taiye: That is not in our plan.

Kehinde: Not really. Though if God wants
it that way, who are we to question Him. But we are not bent on
marrying identical female twins.

Were you a popular identical twins on
campus?

Taiye:  In fact, we were more than
popular. Every UIte and even every OAU student on campus, when we
were in school, knew T.cent and K.cent.

Kehinde: I think an average UIte can
answer that question. UItes used to call us “the most popular twins
on campus.” There is no student on campus in UI between 2012 and
2017 that would not know us.

What pranks have you played on ladies together based
on your identical looks?

Taiye: We don’t do such. We are
responsible people. Besides, we have the fear of God. If I like a
woman, I will tell her. And once I’m into any affairs with a lady,
she’s a no-go area for Kehinde and vice-versa.

Kehinde: Nothing of such. We are
God-fearing twins. We are a part of the Redeemed family. We don’t
play pranks on women.

Do you intend to jointly own a chamber once you have
practised for sometime after Law School?

Taiye: Definitely. We plan to practise
with some top law firms in Nigeria and probably abroad for sometime
after Law School to enable us to garner some firsthand experience.
Thereafter, we shall jointly open our Chambers.

How do people often react when they see you
together?

Taiye: They are always surprised by our
striking semblance. It can be frustrating most times. We may be in
a hurry to a place and somebody will stop us to say he or she knows
us somewhere.

Kehinde: They are always very surprised
and some people may stop us to ask questions like, “are you guys
twins?”

Culled from Punch

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