by Chetachi Ibezimako
Nigeria’s First Lady Oluremi Tinubu, Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma, and Borno State Governor Babagana Umara Zulum were on Saturday awarded honorary degrees of the Federal University of Technology, Owerri (FUTO) in recognition of their immense contributions to the development of education, the country and humanity.
At its 36th Convocation ceremony, FUTO also admitted 632 students to the university’s post-graduate degree having fulfilled all the requirements.
Oluremi Tinubu and Governor Uzodimma were conferred with the honorary degree of Doctor of Management, while Governor Zulum got the honorary degree of the Doctor of Technology.
In his welcome address, the Chancellor of the University, His Royal Highness Alhaji Mohammadu Barkindo Aliyu Musdafa, appreciated the efforts of the university management in dealing with multiple challenges and appealed to the Federal Government to step up the funding of universities, especially FUTO, to enable the university to cope with the prevailing debilitating financial stress.
The Chancellor, whose address was read by the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Nnenna Oti, called on stakeholders like the alumni, corporate bodies, captains of industry, multinational agencies and multilateral linkages to assist the university to achieve its mandate in manpower and skills development to drive national economic development.
In his message, the Visitor to the University, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, congratulated the graduands and the awardees for their meritorious successes and service to the society that merited them the honour.
Represented by the Vice Chancellor University of Calabar, Prof. Florence Obi, the President urged the graduands to harness the potentials in the agricultural, vocational and information technology skills to add value to themselves and the nation at large, reminding them that henceforth, they are ambassadors of FUTO and should exhibit creativity, integrity, honesty and innovations as they go into the larger society.
The President underscored the Federal Government’s commitment towards tertiary education that necessitated the establishment of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) dedicated to granting fees and personal upkeep loans to students, and commended the management of FUTO for the various initiatives that have repositioned it as a choice university in the country.
He urged FUTO and other public universities across the country to make entrepreneurship and skills development top priority so that graduates of the universities will be competitive in emerging technologies and wealth creation nationally and globally.
Tinubu enjoined the Pro-Chancellor, the Vice Chancellor, members of the Governing Council and Senate, principal officers and indeed all staff of FUTO to serve the university with greater zeal, courage and patriotism and continue to ensure prudent use of resources at their disposal.
In her welcome address, the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Nnenna Oti, called for reawakening of the patriotic zeal to attend the critical mass required to join the league of developed nations.
She highlighted several achievements of the university under her watch in the areas of accreditation of academic programmes, establishment of Centre of Excellence, and improved ranking of the university, among others, noting that “for the first time FUTO was mentioned in a global hniversity ranking”.
Oti identified other areas of achievements to include physical infrastructure development, power infrastructure, expansion of ICT infrastructure, staff welfare and development, research and development awards, and many others.
She identified some challenges including lack of staff quarters within the university campus, need for more student hostels, urgent and compelling need for perimeter fencing of the university land, construction of physical infrastructure for the new Teaching Hospital, College of Medicine and Health Sciences and the rehabilitation of internal roads and the major road/broken bridge linking Ihiagwa/other host communities.
She, however, appreciated President Tinubu and Governor Uzodimma for their enormous support and assistance to the university that have continued to sustain their operations.
In their responses after the conferment of the honour, Uzodimma, Zulum and Tinubu appreciated FUTO for the award and pledged their support for the university.
Uzodimma, in appreciation of the award, promised to take up one of the projects enumerated by the university and fund it to completion.
“Today, I’m indeed very glad that I’ve been singled out to be honoured by this great institution – an award which I will hold and cherish for a very long time,” Uzodimma said.
“The difference between other awards and this particular one is that it is coming from an institution that both myself and my government has no influence on, and they were able to single me out for this honour.
“On behalf of myself and my wife, the government of Imo State, we are indeed very grateful,” he said.
Governor Zulum commended the President, the Chancellor of the University, the Pro-Chancellor, Vice Chancellor and Management for finding him worthy of the award, saying he “will never take the award for granted”. He also promised, in “partnership with the Governor of Imo State”, to “support the University to grow and develop”.
On her part, Mrs. Tinubu dedicated the award to the girl child and thanked the university on behalf of other awardees.
She congratulated the graduands and charged them to own Nigeria in such a way that it will be a worthy inheritance for the future generation.
The First Lady also announced her plan to launch the Green Environment Club where all Nigerians will participate in keeping the environments clean and ensuring proper disposal of waste.
She informed that she had earlier donated N50 million as an endowment for the best graduating student and emphasised the need to support the girl child, the reason she dedicated the award to the girl child.
The convocation ceremony was attended by the high and mighty within and outside Imo State.
