Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Benjamin Kalu, has pledged his unalloyed support for various lofty initiatives to boost education in Nigeria.
Kalu gave the assurance when he received a delegation from the University of Calabar led by the Vice Chancellor, Professor Florence Obi and the Provost, Post-Graduate School of the University, Professor Enyong Ubana, on a courtesy call in his office in Abuja on Monday.
The delegation visited to inform the Deputy Speaker about their upcoming 50th anniversary/convocation lecture and to convey to him the organising committee’s decision to make him the guest lecturer.
Recalling his days at his alma mater, Kalu said that the University of Calabar instilled the virtues of hard work, competition, and patriotism and moulded his character to contribute to nation-building.
He said: “As Deputy Speaker, I recognise the critical role that education plays in shaping the future of our nation. I’m dedicated to supporting initiatives promoting access to quality education, and I believe Unical is uniquely positioned to play a leading role in this effort.
“I’m proud to have been shaped by this institution, and I’m committed to continuing to partner with Unical to advance the cause of education in Nigeria, like my favourite Vice Chancellor, favourite in the sense that only a few women occupy this position in Nigeria, said. I’m a he for her, and I like to see women get involved in leadership positions.
“We were taught to be the best, competitive in everything, give it all the energy it requires. We were taught to avoid corruption and brought it into leadership.
We were taught to be patriotic, to be proud Nigerians. Today, in the National Assembly, we are pushing. Whatever we earned at Unical was through hard work and that spirit we’ve carried into our workplace. I’m proud of my University. I’m grateful for the transformative impact Unical has had on my life.”
Decorated as an ambassador of the university by the Vice Chancellor, Kalu also vowed to sustain the legacy and the discipline received from the university where he is currently doing his doctorate in law.
He added that the performance and achievements of some university students inspired him to sponsor awards to encourage young law students.
“I’m inspired by the achievements of Unical’s students, such as the law students who recently benefited from awards I sponsored. He said awards like the Best Student in Jurisprudence and Legal Theory, Company Law, Commercial Law, and Law of Evidence and Constitutional Law”.
The Deputy Speaker urged the university to participate in the ongoing constitutional review by conducting quality research on issues such as State Policing. He also promised to attend the upcoming 50th anniversary/convocation lectures.
Earlier in their separate remarks, the Vice Chancellor of the university, Professor Obi, and the Provost of the postgraduate School, Professor Ubana, who is also the Chairman of the Organising Committee of Unical at 50, described Kalu as the university’s unique gift to the nation, saying he is making the country proud in his legislative engagements.”One gift our university has given the nation is His Excellency. There are others. You are one of the ambassadors of the University of Calabar. Today, we have come here to decorate you. We are decorating you today as one of the university’s ambassadors. We have carefully selected the outstanding ones”, the Vice Chancellor said.