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•As varsity appoints him visiting professor
By Gabriel Dike
A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and Managing Partner, Alliance Law Firm, Dr. Uche Valentine Obi, has donated Law books and journals, valued at N10 million to Christopher University (UNICHRIS) Mowe, Ogun State.
The books and journals were presented to UNICHRIS Vice Chancellor, Professor Olatunji Oyelana, at a public lecture delivered by the donor, Dr. Uche Valentine Obi.
As part of the event, Dr. Obi was appointed as a visiting Professor to UNICHRIS School of Law and the VC, Prof. Oyelana, presented him with the letter of appointment.
The triple event was witnessed by Obi’s wife, Mrs. Emmanuella Obi, his two daughters, lawyers from Alliance Law Firm, his associates, UNICHRIS management and students of School of Law.
Obi said the donation of the books and journals is his contribution to support the university School of Law and hoped the staff and students will use it judiciously.
Receiving the books and journals, the VC, Prof. Oyelana, lauded Obi for the donation to the School of Law and likr Oliver Twist, he requested for more support for staff and students.
An elated Prof. Oyelana, disclosed that the books and journals would help both staff and students in their studies and research.
The President, School of Law Students Association, Uko Meyene-Abasi, appreciated the donation of the books and journals.
He presented Obi with a plaque on behalf of Law Students and noted that the donation is for both present and future generations of Law students.
In his speech, UNICHR VC, Prof. Oyelana, said the Proprietor, Chief Christopher Ikechi Ezeh decided to throw his hat into the education sector over 20 years ago, and established Christopher University in 2015 at the time when the quality of tertiary education was on the decline in Nigeria.
Oyelana stressed that the mid-1990s to early 2000s was challenging for Nigeria in the field of education, as universities experienced: acute shortage of quality academics and professionals as a result of brain-drain; infrastructure decay, and poor teaching/research facilities due to neglect by government, misplaced priorities.
Others are incessant closure of universities arising from industrial unrest, students’ riots, cultism, and breakdown in social amenities, and security breaches.
He added: “In the assessment of our founder, the decadence in infrastructure and facilities for teaching/research, and the poor quality of human capital within the sector contributed to the poor-quality graduates from our universities, they were lacking in essential technical and professional skills to compete and succeed in the workplace.
“So, these specific skills gaps make our university graduates unattractive to employers at corporate levels and multinational organizations and industries.”
Oyelana said based on the numerous issues, the founder felt he has to come in and contribute toward redeeming the image and the lost glory of tertiary institutions.
“We are proud of this moment; as our university is about to take delivery of Law books and journals worth over N10 million, through the philanthropic gesture of Dr Uchechukwu Valentine Obi, our SAN.
“The books will increase our Law Library holdings in corporate law practices and advocacy and in other relevant literatures and publications that are essentials to “law Practice” anywhere in the world,” Oyelana stated.
The VC said the books are current and relevant, and would address current trends and emerging and contemporary issues in Law practice and corporate advocacy and jurisprudence.
Oyelana observed that the singular action and gesture is a blessing to the university as it would boost the accreditation status of UNICHRIS Law programme as we get ready to receive the officials of the Council of Legal Education (CLE) and the National Universities Commission (NUC) in few weeks to accredit the Law degree programme.
He asked Obi to consider admitting its students for internship in his chambers at the appropriate time in their training, adding, “if there are scholarship opportunities for indigent students, kindly consider our students too.”
At the triple event, Obi delivered the School of Law lecture, titled: “Data is the New Oil: Understand Privacy and Data Protection Law in Nigeria”.
He disclosed that on June 20th, 2023, Nigeria took a major step forward by passing the Nigeria Data Protection Act, 2023, arguing that the act introduces a legal framework that protects how personal information is collected, used and stored.
Obi advised universities to take advantage of the field of study in Law and urged the students to make a career in Compliance Audit Returns and also tasked them to explore going into the field of data.
“Ultimately, the future of privacy in Nigeria hinges not only on the strength of the laws but on the proactiveness of the regulators, the responsiveness of institutions and the awareness of citizens,” Obi stated.
On his appointment as visiting Professor, UNICHRIS Registrar, Mr. Aloysius Udeoke, said Obi’s appointment followed due process and that he met the lay down criteria.
He revealed that UNICHRIS Senate accessed the quality of Obi’s contributions to the legal profession and his support to the university.
While the VC told the gathering that the governing council approved the Senate recommendation to appoint Obi as visiting Professor and directed that his inauguration be done without delay.
In his response, Obi appreciated his appointment as a Professor, noting, “I never lobbied for the appointment. I never discuss it with any of the university management or even the Chancellor.
Said he: “UNICHRIS is a unique university and I believe in industrial collaboration for students to gain knowledge.”
Obi said the appointment is a call to work, serve the university and learn from them. He declared that UNICHRIS graduates would continue to make the institution proud.
