It is another historic day in the life of the University of Abuja as the institution holds its 22nd convocation ceremony, the highlight of which students who have passed the prescribed examinations in their various courses and who have also satisfied the university authorities that they found worthy both in learning and character will be awarded with various categories of degrees and certificates.
Prior to June 30th 2014 when the present University Administration headed by Professor Michael Adikwu came on board, the university could be said to have been in a pariah state shunned by many prospective students and parents owing to the crises that had engulfed the institution. But three and half years later the University of Abuja can be said to be the toast of many prospective students across the nation and beyond. For instance, over 16, 000 prospective students applied to the institution for placement in the 2016/2017 academic year, a marked improvement on the paltry 3,700 that applied two years earlier. Nearly 30,000 applicants chose the University as their preferred institution indicating the growing confidence among the generality of the public in the current session.
Just like the British believed that the battle of Bosworth of 1485 was the turning point in the history of their nation, it could be said with all modesty that the appointment of Professor Michael Adikwu a man of high intellectual wattages and a scholar of international repute could be said to be the finest moment and the turning point of the university of Abuja.
The 22nd convocation ceremony of the university which is taking place on Saturday, February 24, marks three successive years in which the institution has successfully gone through a fit that has not been equaled even by older similar institutions.
A convocation is the most notable event in the university calendar because it gives the university the opportunity to tell the story of its success and some challenges to the outside world and although the case of the University of Abuja may not be different Many keen observers of events that have taken place in the university in the last three years points to the fact that the institution is on the right cause to achieving its mission and vision in the act that set it up when it opened its doors to students at its mini campus in Gwagwalada in 1988. In its 21st convocation last year, the total number of students which were conferred with various categories of degrees and certificates was over 13,000 but this year’s number may rise because of the remarkably increased number of facilities and the accreditation of more courses even though accreditation of some courses remains problematic. The last three years of the university has been the story of peace, tranquility, infrastructural development and academic continuity without disruption whatsoever and credit must be given to the university authority that brought about the synergy between all the contending officials, the academic, administrative, the non- academic staff, the four principal officers, the university governing council, the senate and the student union government.
The chancellor of the university, His Royal Highness, Alhaji (Dr.) Shehu Idris (CFR), noticed these positive development when he said in his welcome address at last year convocation that despite his recent past which tended to portray it as unstable is now on course to take its rightful place among great institution and that we are gathered here today one year after a similar event to witness another convocation to the fact that the university of Abuja is now enjoying an atmosphere of peace and harmony which has ensured the uninterrupted conduct of academic activities.
Although the vice-chancellor is expected to give more insight of positive development that have taken place since the last convocation, a few examples can be sighted here these include the resolution of the problem of medical students of the university which has stalled for over a decade with the first set of students who have now successfully graduated and contributing to the provision of head services to their father land.
The problem of students accommodation is being tackled with vigour with the building of both the boys and the girls hostels which can accommodate about 3,000 students while efforts are being made for public/private partnership to provide more hostels for the students. Lecture halls are continually being built in the permanent site to accommodate larger number of students while befitting offices are continually being built for academic staff. The issue of staff salaries which has been an endemic problem in the past has been partially resolved with the hope that the federal government will take over the payment of staff salaries through integrated payroll and personal information (IPPIS) thus, removing the burden from the university authorities.
The building of the permanent site of Abuja which was chosen as a plot of naked land and designed as a Centre of learning poses a great challenge of a infrastructural development but with the help of the federal government and agencies like TETFUND and with the prudent management of scarce resources, the authorities of the University of Abuja under the able leadership of Prof. Adikwu are doing their best realizing, as the Chinese say a journey of a thousand mile starts with a step and in this case several possible steps have been taken.
On the part of the students both the chancellor and the vice-chancellor are likely to stress the importance of discipline in their addresses at the convocation and the fact that the graduating students should be good ambassadors of their institution, graduates should note that the acquisition of certificates are not ends in itself but a means to an end. And that is why the issue of character and learning, the twin words, is always stressed at every convocation.
This is an institution which does not suffer the deficit of a catchment area syndrome. This is an institution where the students on getting into it knows when to get out of it if he works hard, this is an institution where the academic staff are ever ready to assist the student solve their academic problems, this is an institution where the possibility of going on strike as a result of none payment of staff salaries is remote.
As the university convokes this Saturday, all men of goodwill and friends wish the convoking students and all university officials a successful outing.
Adams writes from Abuja
