Leadership (Abuja)
Nick Uweru
5 October 2008
The Nigeria Defence Academy (NDA) recorded a major first at the end of its 20th convocation ceremony yesterday. At the event, two former ministers of defence and the first academic provost of the academy were awarded honorary doctorate degrees.
The minister of defence during President Olusegun Obasanjo's first term, Gen. Theophilus Yakubu Danjuma; the current secretary to the government of the federation, Ahmed Yayale, also a former minister of defence; and a former academic provost of the NDA, Samson C. Ukpabi, bagged the award.
Earlier on the NDA parade ground, Vice President Goodluck Jonathan had presided over the 56th passing-out parade of the graduate cadets of the academy. He was also present at the award of honorary degrees to Danjuma, Yayale and Ukpabi.
NDA awarded Danjuma an honorary Doctor of Science while Yayale and Ukpabi were awarded Doctor of Letters.
Explaining why the degrees were awarded, Dr Danladi King Garba, a member of a committee on the convocation ceremony, said the trio had contributed immensely to the development of the academy.
He said that as a former number two man to Obasanjo as military head of state and later minister of defence, "T. Y. Danjuma initiated programmes that led to the transforming of NDA from a certificate of education-awarding institution to a full degree-awarding one. We must not also overlook his contribution to national development, and the military in particular over the years," said Garba.
Concerning Yayale Ahmed, he said that while he was serving as minister of defence he was the chairman, NDA Council. "He did a lot to see that the nation's premier military academy, NDA, began a postgraduate programme with a full-fledged campus at its old site in Kaduna," added Dr Garba.
On Professor Ukpabi, he said he was also instrumental in NDA starting a degree programme in 1985. He was the first academic provost of the academy from 1985 and served for eight years.
Reacting to the awards, Abdulrahaman Ibrahim Sade, chairman, National Youth Peace Initiative, and a close associate of SGF Yayale Ahmed, said the award could not have been timelier.
"It shows that the recent appointment of Yayale Ahmed as SGF was on merit, sheer diligence and high sense of duty to the nation at various times in the past and even now. Wherever he serves, he makes impact," noted Sade.
President Umaru Yar'Adua, at the ceremony, said his administration would not allow the activities of Niger Delta militants to jeopardise the corporate existence, peace and security of the country or threaten foreign investments in the region.
He said the Niger Delta Development Commission is working assiduously to uplift the living standard of the people of the region.
Making the remarks as the reviewer of the Nigeria Defence Academy 56 Regular Course and Graduation Ceremony at the Mando Airport Road, Kaduna, yesterday, Yar'Adua said the federal government would provide support and logistics as well as training and retraining of the nation's military at all times.
President Yar'Adua, who spoke through Vice President Goodluck Jonathan, charged the military to ensure strict discipline and loyalty to the constituted authorities as enshrined in the constitution.
"The military has been involved in aiding civil authorities in the event of unrest at various times, and it's highly commendable."
The 56 Regular Course comprising 199 cadets graduated in different disciplines including 20 at postgraduate level.
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