Visitor Visa Approved, Student Visa Application can still be sent?

[p_07]

My brother applied for a visitor's visa to visit me in Canada in March 2021. And due to the pandemic, his visa wasn't approved all this while. In the meanwhile, he changed his mind and applied for a 2-yr degree in a college in Toronto and got the admit. Just before sending the application for a student visa (while the visitor visa application was pending), he got a passport request for his visitor's visa (after 1.5 years of applying). He hasn't yet sent in his passport for the visitor's visa sticker.

What do you suggest? Should he get the visitor visa sticker, and then simultaneously apply for a student visa? Or ignore the passport request for visitor visa and just apply for the student visa? Thanks for your suggestions!