The University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN) yesterday 29th day of November, 2018 held her 48th Convocation Lecture tagged “INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT: A KEY TO ECONOMIC GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA” presented by Engr. (Dr) Emeka Okwuosa, and Award/Prize winning night both held in Princess Alexandra Auditorium and Unity Hall.
The lecture started at about 11:45am. The Vice Chancellor Prof. Benjamin Chukwuma Ozumba, Chief. Dr John Nnia Nwodo, the President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo and many royal fathers and principal officers of the university were in attendance.
In his opening remark, the chairman of the event, Chief John Nnia Nwodo, was appreciative and delighted at the honour accorded him as the chairman of the occasion by the university. He underscores that the topic of the lecture, is very pertinent to Nigerian economic situation and could not have come at a better time. According to Nwodo, “Our country is about to go broke as we are witnessing a progressive fall in crude oil production which is the mainstay of our economy.” The President General of the apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation contends that the industrial world, especially the US and Western Europe are moving away from fossil fuel and that a time is coming when the international market will be saturated with alternative sources of energy. In the face of this, he sees gloomy days ahead, suggesting that the only thing that could save Nigeria is economic diversification.
Nwodo added that the convocation lecture is not simply an academic exercise but a call for action as its outcome will most assuredly determine the direction and condition of Nigeria in the coming years. He described the guest lecturer, Engr. (Dr) Okwuosa, as a seasoned innovator, a fulfilled investor and a philanthropist, will do justice to the subject matter. In his words, “The world is changing; let us listen to Emeka Okwuosa as he tells us how we will change with it.”
The Vice-chancellor of the university, Prof. Uzumba, in his own opening remark, thanked Chief Nwodo for honouring their invitation to chair the event and for his other collaborations with the university. He agrees with Nwodo that what will save the Nigerian economy from the dire situation confronting it is economic diversification, and listed what the university under his vice-chancellorship has been doing to salvage the situation. He therefore, called on individuals, corporate organizations and the governmental agencies to collaborate with the university to enable it fulfil its obligation to society.
The guest lecturer Engr. (Dr) Okwuosa, in his presentation identified lack of infrastructural development as the nucleus of Nigeria’s problems. Okwuosa posits therefore, that for Nigeria to extricate herself from the worrisome economic situation she faces currently there is need to invest massively in three basic areas namely: power, transportation and human capacity building.
Nevertheless, he mentioned that the transition to development in these areas cannot be achieved without visionary leadership. On this ground, he requested for public-private sector synergy which according to him will inject the entrepreneurial impetus required to move Nigeria forward.
He concluded his very exciting and incisive lecture with an insistence that what Nigeria needs at the moment are innovative minded people. Using people like Bill Gate, Thomas Edison, Steve Jobs as example of such people, etc. He said that no economy can develop without entrepreneurs. He therefore, encouraged the young graduating students to go into the world, to innovate and make Nigeria the pride of Africa.
At the end of the lecture, the Vice-chancellor presented gifts to the guest lecturer, Engr. (Dr) Emeka Okwuosa and the chairman of the occasion, Chief Dr John Nnia Nwodo in appreciation of their work.
The award night was also a huge success as students and lecturers graced the occasion. His Imperial Majesty, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Babatunde Ogunwusi, Ojaja II, the Oni of Ife, was ably represented by the Vice-chancellor Prof. Ozumba, the Pro-chancellor, Chief Mike Olurunfemi, and his wife, other members of the University Governing Council, the award winning students and members of the fourth estate of the realm were all in attendance.
The Vice-chancellor stated that the award winning night is one of the most exciting moments in the convocation ceremony as it is the time to celebrate excellence and motivate other students to aspire toward excellence.
The school registrar, Barr Igbokwe coordinated the presentation of the awards. The prizes won were divided into four categories: university award to the best graduating student, the faculty awards to the best graduating students in the various faculties, departmental awards to the best graduating students at the departmental levels and awards from individual and institutions to the best graduating students designated fields.
It was an exciting night as scores of graduands trooped out amidst cheers and jubilations from friends and fellow students to receive prizes that ran into hundreds of thousands of Naira. The climax of the night was reached when the overall best graduating student, Mba Mary Amarachi from Pharmacy Department was announced and invited to collect an endless stream of prizes from the university, institutions and individuals. It was a highly contested position but Mba beats other contestants with a CGPA of 4.94. The curtain was drawn at 9:30pm after a vote of thanks was given by Prof. N. Ofokansi, Chairman – Senate Ceremonial Committee.
In a spontaneous interview with a cross-section of 100-level students at the end of the occasion described them as highly motivated by the award night. “Some of them went as far as vowing that no Jupiter whatsoever would stop them from ‘climbing stage.’” Indeed it was a ‘leap year day’ and a great night to remember not only for the graduating students but also for the entire university community.
