The University on the Niger, Umunya, Anambra State, weekend, held a two-day orientation course for its newly admitted students following the institution’s recent formal commencement of academic and administrative activities.
The orientation programme which took place at the Archbishop C. J. Patterson Auditorium, Onitsha, between Thursday, January 25, and Friday 26, 2024 was described by many as the most unprecedented of its kind in the history of tertiary institutions in the South East of the country.
Among features that placed the event on a prominent relief was the presence of over 50 Anglican Bishops in the South East whose prayers for the students were said by the Dean, Church of Nigeria, the Most Rev Dr Blessing Enyinda and the Archbishop of the Owerri Ecclesiastical Province, the Most Rev Dr David Onuoha.
Earlier, the Presidential Candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 General Elections, His Excellency, Peter Obi, had on a visit to the Iyi-Enu Mission Teaching Hospital take-off campus of the institution expressed satisfaction over the work on ground and donated ₦10 M to the university for its further development.
Responding while receiving the N10 million cheque, the Bishop on the Niger, the Rt Rev Dr Owen Nwokolo, deeply expressed appreciation for Mr Obi’s magnanimity and the special love he said Mr Obi had for the things of God and education in particular.
Among other pleasantries and formal acknowledgements of Mr Obi’s numerous philanthropies to the diocese and humanity, the Bishop prayed for him, his career and family.
The two-day programme exposed the students to various capacity, moral and spiritual building expositions by renowned experts.
While Prof. Uche Onwudiegwu spoke on “Sexual Harassment”, Examination Malpractice” and “Cultism” and what he described as their attendant negative effects, another guest speaker, Engr Larry Oguego, dwelt on “Positioning yourself for a successful career.”
The Vice Chancellor of the university, the Very Venerable Chinedu Nebo who in his opening speech encouraged the students not to relent in their various disciplines in the school, had in an interview shortly after the ceremony, explained the philosophical uniqueness underpin of the institution.
He said: “The uniqueness of our university stems, first, from the fact that the university is a faith-based institution. Second, it is an entrepreneurial university; a university that is built on the solid principle of entrepreneurship, because we intend to produce students who have an entrepreneurial mindset.
“It is a university that values character over anything else. This is because learning without character is like acquiring knowledge without wisdom.
“In the university, we want to train students that are very responsible human beings who will excel in every walk of life. It is unique in the sense that our aim is not to swell the job hunters’ market when the students graduate, ” the Vice Chancellor emphasized.
