Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) To Honour Foremost Afe Babalola

Indeed, both the cadets and Faculty of the sedate Military University will crane their necks and the trees on its well-manicured lawns will lower their gaze to catch a glimpse of Babalola, a man who is different things to different people, as he steps forward for the Award of a Doctor of Letters (Honoris Causa), in appreciation of his “service to the nation and significant contributions to human development.” With this award, the NDA, which was established in January 1964 as a reformation centre for the British-run Royal Military Forces Training College (RMFTC) and renamed the Nigerian Military Training College (NMTC) upon Nigeria’s independence in 1960, but became a Degree Awarding Institution in 1985, has thus taken cognizance of Babalola’s genuine commitment to promoting the cause of humanity which has marked him out as a philanthropist of note whose social consciousness is a source of inspiration to millions of Nigerians and as such deserving to be celebrated at the grand finale of its 28th Convocation ceremonies. For Afe Babalola, NDA’s honorary is significant in many ways: he has become the 23rd among distinguished Nigerians and two foreign Heads of State to have been so honoured by the NDA while the same Award is the 7th of such honorary Doctorate Degrees from reputable institutions for the frontline legal icon and protagonist of functional and quality education who has pooled and devoted his resources to education since his two-term stint as an exemplary Pro Chancellor and Chairman of Council of the University of Lagos between 2000 and 2007, an experience which gave birth to his seven-year old university, ABUAD, which commenced uninterrupted academic works on January 4, 2010. The others are Doctor of Laws (h.c) University of Ado-Ekiti, Ado-Ekiti, 2000; Doctor of Letters (h.c) (D.Litt) Kogi State University, 2012; Doctor of Laws (h.c) University of Lagos, February 2013; Doctor of Laws (h.c) University of Jos, March 2013 and Doctor of Management (h.c), Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), 2014 as well as Doctor of Laws (h.c) University of London. The cheering and elevating news came vide a June 28, 2017 letter from the NDA which predicated Babalola’s latest award on the “recognition of your brilliant legal practice of over five decades and outstanding contributions to the development of Nigerian Law and Jurisprudence.” The letter which was signed by the Commandant of the Academy, Maj.-Gen. M.T. Ibrahim, said: “The 28th Convocation Ceremony for Cadets of 64 (Army, Navy and Airforce) and 65 (Navy and Airforce) Regular Course and Postgraduate students of the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) is scheduled to hold on Thursday, September 14, 2017. This is ahead of the Passing Out Parade which comes up on (Saturday) September 16, 2017. The Convocation Ceremony will feature the Award of Degrees and Diplomas to the graduating cadets and Postgraduate students.” Ibrahim added: “In addition, Honorary Degrees will be conferred on deserving personalities who have distinguished themselves in service to the nation and made significant contributions to human development.” As a further confirmation of Babalola’s continued contributions to human development, the Alumni Association of Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko, Ondo State, conferred on him the 21st Century Global Icon in Education and Human Development on October 30, 2015. “Over the years”, Ibrahim continued, “the Academy has conferred Honorary Degrees on 22 Distinguished Nigerians and two foreign Heads of State. This year, the Academy has found it worthy to nominate you and two other distinguished and eminent Nigerians for the Award. “This honour is in recognition of your brilliant legal practice of over five decades and outstanding contributions to the development of Nigerian Law and Jurisprudence. It is also to acknowledge your intellectual vibrancy, scholarship and indelible contributions to legal education as evident in your vast publications. Indeed, your indelible contributions to the enhancement of the general educational landscape of Nigeria remain unquantifiable. “In line with the approval of the NDA Council, the Academy proposes to confer Doctor of Letters (Honoris Causa) on you during the forthcoming Convocation Ceremony. I have the honour therefore to most respectfully request you to kindly confirm your acceptance of the Award at the earliest possible time….” Reacting to the award, Babalola thanked the NDA Council for taking note of his modest contributions through his various humanitarian programmes and for nominating him for the Award. “Before I say anything at all, I must say that I accept the Award and I will be personally present to receive in Kaduna,” he said. He added that it was not difficult for him to accept the Award because the awarding institution, the NDA, is committed to discipline and quality education just like his own university, ABUAD. He said his modest contributions to the educational landscape of the country is a dream come true and expressed happiness that this is happening in his life time, pointing out that his decision to set up a university was informed by his experience during his seven-year stint as the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of Council at the University of Lagos during which time he was able to see, first hand and bare-facedly, the decay and rot in our educational system. Together with his colleagues in UNILAG, he recalled, that they were able to turn the university around as a result of which the university was not only voted the best in the country then, Babalola was twice voted the Best Pro-Chancellor. But because he did not believe that was enough and to prove a point, he sold choice properties in Lagos, Abuja, and United Kingdom as well as in the United States to establish ABUAD as a leader in quality, functional and reformatory education and to show the world that it is do-able. Babalola said the only legacy he could bequeath to this generation of Nigerians and those coming behind lies in quality and functional education that will produce allround graduates that will not be pounding the streets of our urban centres looking for white collar jobs, but ones who will not only be self-employed, but will employ others. To him, the award is not just another honour, but a catalyst that will ginger and propel him to do more in his service to education and humanity.]]>