The Federal University Lokoja (FUL) has honoured Rt Hon James Abiodun Faleke, and five other distinguished personalities with honorary doctorate degrees in its 6th/7th combined convocation ceremony on Saturday 21st October, 2023
The Vice-chancellor (VC) of the varsity, Prof. Olayemi Akinwumi, who revealed the six distinguished personalities honoured by the university at the convocation, described the awards as “apt” and “very worthy.”
Rt. Hon. James Faleke, Member House of Rep for Ikeja Federal Constituency was honored with Doctor of Letters D. Lift (Honoris Causal) at Federal University Lokoja 6th & 7th Convocation
In his early career, Faleke worked in senior managerial positions with several high profile companies. He was with Aluminium Manufacturing Company of Nigeria (ALUMCO) PLC as Purchasing Manager and in early 2000, he moved his services to Crown Agents Ltd as Commercial Manager.
The Ekinrin Adde, Ijimu Local Government Area born 25 December 1959 (age 63 years), Faleke joined active politics in 2003 after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu then governor of Lagos state appointed him first Executive Secretary of newly created Ojodu Local Council Development Area (LCDA) of Lagos state. In 2011, Faleke won a vote to represent Ikeja Federal Constituency of Lagos state in the Nigeria’s Federal House of Representatives. In 2015, he ran on a joint ticket as Deputy Governorship candidate to Abubakar Audu in his home state of Kogi. They won majority votes cast in the keenly contested election displacing People’s Democratic Party, PDP for the first time in more than a decade with comfortable winning margin. But Abubakar Audu died shortly before the official declaration of the results. Their party, the All Progressives Congress, APC then transferred the votes to Yahaya Bello who was first runner up in the party’s primary election.
Faleke’s philanthropic and service to the people initiative was recognized and rewarded with an honorary award in recognition of his contribution to the growth of democracy.
He equally solicited for all Nigerians to join hands to make Nigeria better and greater by supporting the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration’s mantra of Renewed Hope for the country.
He urged all the graduands to ensure that they’re beacons of renewed hope for the nation and be leaders indeed in all spheres of their endeavors.
Other awardees include Mr. Ahmad Isah, popularly known as the ‘Ordinary President’, ‘Voice of the Voiceless’, and ‘Grand Commander of the Ordinary Nigerians’ (GCON) is the founder and president of the Brekete Family consortium.
He is a philanthropist, an entrepreneur, an activist, a radio personality, a veteran broadcaster, and anchor of the Brekete family, a radio programme focused on human rights.
Prof. Olu Obafemi, a Nigerian poet, playwright, author, and Professor of English and Dramatic Literature at the University of Ilorin since October 1990 was also honoured by the university.
Mr Obafemi, an indigene of Kogi, is the 76th recipient of the Nigerian National Order of Merit (NMOM) award (2018). He was the president of the Nigerian Academy of Letters between 2016 and 2018.
Others are Dr Samson Adegoke, former rector, Osun State College of Technology and master student, electrical and electronic engineering, Johannesburg, South Africa.
The VC congratulated the awardees, whom he said had distinguished themselves in their various fields and had been an encouragement to the institution.
He disclosed that out of a total of 2,511 first-degree graduands that convocated, “61 of them got First Class Honours, while 99 have Master degrees and 128 Postgraduate Diploma.”
Mr Akinwumi, who congratulated the graduands on the academic feat, rejoiced with them and their families for the journey so far.
The VC cautioned them against joining criminal elements in their pursuit of heights but should be good ambassadors of Federal University Lokoja by “upholding the morals and values of this noble university.”
“It will interest you to know that all the programmes of the university are domiciled on the permanent site in Felele with all academic activities taking place there.
“FUL today has added to its academic programmes, medicine, nursing and engineering, while agriculture, law, pharmacy, psychology and medical laboratory science programmes are in the pipeline.
“Consequently, today, at this convocation ceremony, we shall be launching an endowment fund through which the institution will solicit the support and contributions of well-meaning Nigerians toward enhancing infrastructure development.
“Some of the projects for endowment include 500-bed space capacity for students hostel, 500 seater capacity lecture theatre and a research Laboratory Building with Equipment.
“Others are 400-bed space hostel for medical students, anatomy laboratory for medical students, mass communication building, Faculty of Law Library, 500 capacity multi-purpose hall/assembly and a 500-capacity auditorium etc,” he said.
