As ABU holds its 37th convocation

The university governing council approved the the two awards plus a Wall of Fame that started during its Golden Jubilee Convocation ceremony held in 2012. And as part of tomorrow’s occasion, nominations for different categories of the awards were invited from members of the university community. For example, the Sardauna Merit Award is reserved for […]

The university governing council approved the the two awards plus a Wall of Fame that started during its Golden Jubilee Convocation ceremony held in 2012. And as part of tomorrow’s occasion, nominations for different categories of the awards were invited from members of the university community. For example, the Sardauna Merit Award is reserved for those individuals, staff, alumni, corporate bodies and friends of the university who, in one way or another, have contributed to the development and transformation of the institution and humanity in general.
And the Vice Chancellor’s Award will be bestowed on the most committed, honest, hardworking and productive staff who has displayed high level of initiative towards the realization of the vision and mission of the university. The Wall of Fame accords recognition to individual members of the university who have made exceptional contributions to the development of the institution.
For tomorrow’s convocation, the university has only the Sardauna and Vice Chancellor’s awards as it has put on hold that of Wall of Fame till another time. Permanent Secretary Ecological Fund Office Engr. Sheikh Goni Musa is the only recipient for the Sardauna award. The recipient, himself an alumnus of the university, came to the rescue of the university dam from disappearance, after several aborted efforts. The dam, established more than 40 years ago, is the single most important asset of the university as its water source. Engr. Goni worked tirelessly to see that all the submissions made to the Ecological Fund Office by the university for intervention scaled through. Significantly, he used his good offices to see that over N10 billion will be spent for the project. Dredging of the dam with two sediment traps, a retention basin, a retain wall and a new water treatment plant with a capacity of 3000 cubic metres has already commenced.
The Vice Chancellor’s award is in two categories – individuals and groups of staff who work as research teams to produce results. There were eight awardees for the individuals and five for the research teams.
The research teams that clinched this category of the award include members of the university’s African Centre of Excellence on Neglected Tropical Diseases and Forensic Biotechnology led by Professor Andrew Jonathan Nok of the institution’s department of Biochemistry and members of the Software Development team being headed by Professor S B Junaidu for developing the university students registration portal and software for registry and bursary.
They also include members of the Computer Hardware team led by Malam Mohammed Bashir Sani for installation of all software of the university and those of the Plant Genetic for the development of pod borer resistant transgenic cowpea. Members of the epidemiology team being led by Kabir Sabitu, a professor of community medicine and epidemiology, are also considered for the award for playing a leading role at the national committee on the prevention and control of Ebola Virus Disease.
All these are besides the usual ceremonies of conferring first degrees, higher degrees, postgraduate diplomas and honorary degrees as a common tradition in Nigerian university system. A total of 14,067 graduates will receive their degrees and certificates during the convocation. Of the number, 9232 are undergraduates with 33 of them clinching First Class and 1273 Second Class Upper. The remaining ones (4835) are postgraduates – 360 PhD, 2339 Masters and 2136 Postgraduate Diplomas. The university also has pencilled down three eminent personalities for its honorary doctorate degrees. They are former Minister of Petroleum and Energy Alhaji Shettima Ali Monguno, retired Federal Permanent Secretary Dr Bukar Usman and a member of the Saudi royal family Prince
Talal Abdulazeez Bin Al Saud who have already been notified of their selection for such awards. For example, Monguno will be conferred with Doctor of Law, Usman will receive Doctor of Letters and the Saudi prince is to get Doctor of Science. Monguno, widely acclaimed as an educationist and philanthropist who established schools to assist the less privileged in addition to donating text and exercise books to various schools and indigent students, is also known for his selfless service to humanity and his vicarious concern for the victims of the Boko Haram insurgents by offering to intervene and negotiate with the insurgents at the risk of his life.
Usman, who is an alumnus of the university having graduated in 1969, is being honoured as an accomplished administrator.  
The Saudi prince has distinguished himself as an international philanthropist, particularly in the Third World countries. He is President of the Arab Council for Childhood and Development, the Arab Network for Non-Governmental Organizations and the Arab Women Centre for Training and Research. President Goodluck Jonathan, who is Visitor to the university, is expected to grace the occasion along with other key government functionaries, including the Minister of Education Malam Ibrahim Shekarau.

Umar is ABU’s head of information and publication unit