An Address Delivered by Engr. Ifeoluwa Oyedele at the 53rd Convocation Ceremony of Unilag

*AN ADDRESS DELIVERED BY ENGR. IFEOLUWA OYEDELE* *DURING THE*

*CONFERMENT OF POSTGRADUATE* *DIPLOMAS, MASTERS DEGREES, AND PH. D DEGREES OF THE* *SCHOOL OF POSTGRADUATE* *STUDIES AND AWARD OF GOLD MEDAL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF LAGOS, AKOKA, LAGOS*

ON WEDNESDAY 18TH JANUARY 2022

On behalf of the National Executive Committee and the entire members of the University of Lagos Alumni Association, I heartily congratulate you on the successful completion of your studies and the conferment of the prestigious Postgraduate Diplomas, Masters Degrees, and Ph.D Degrees of the University of Lagos – Nigeria’s University of first choice.

It is my sincere pleasure to welcome you into the fold of a highly progressive and proactive Association that has been defining what an Alumni Association truly represents. Over the years, members of this great Association have distinguished themselves in virtually all fields of human endeavours. Your fellow alumni are found in various spheres of influence and discipline – in governance, Engineering, Medicine, Law, Sciences, Finance, Insurance, Advertising, Administration, Journalism, Academia, and many others throughout the nation and the rest of the world.

For six decades the University of Lagos has been providing world-class education and training to thousands of students. You are therefore coming into a prestigious syndicate of well trained people who are mentally equipped, intellectually groomed, and emotionally prepared, to succeed in their different callings. With your training, the prevailing socio-economic challenges should serve as an opportunity to be creative and resourceful so that you can become highly accomplished and fulfilled in your chosen careers.

The Alumni Association into which you are about to be inducted is now strategically positioned to serve as the lifeblood of your alma mater. It will continue to be a bridge between town and gown. The Association is poised to attract world-class developmental projects to the University through active engagements and robust partnership with the corporate world. It may interest you to know that the number of active members of the Association continue to grow exponentially. New branches and Alumni sets are sprouting up and being inaugurated in all states of the Federation, the Federal Capital Territory and the diaspora. The national body is now poised to collaborate with our alma mater to ease the challenges faced by the University and its students. We cannot wait for you to join these noble exploits as you imbibe the intrinsic values of generosity, kindness, and philanthropy so that together we can, through the University, make meaningful impact on the world at large. It is by so doing that we can claim to have left a legacy when we are no longer on this side of the divide.

As you journey through life, I admonish you to be conscious of the fact that you are an ambassador of the distinct brand that the University of Lagos has become. You must never do anything that will bring it to disrepute. I am not unaware that some of you acquired your earlier degrees from other Institutions, nevertheless I am confident that you will soon appreciate how much your confidence and status has been boosted by your admission into the membership of this great Institution.

Congratulations once again, and on behalf of the National Executive Committee, as well as the entire members of the University of Lagos Alumni Association, it is my priviledge and honour to invite you to take the Alumni Pledge as you repeat after me:

*ALUMNI PLEDGE*

I…………………………………………………………………………..(First and Surname)

Do solemnly pledge as a proud alumnus/alumna of the University of Lagos, a foremost University, to conduct myself in a manner befitting my status, and in the best traditions of distinguished alumni/alumnae before me, be and remain a most worthy ambassador, upholding the best in human values and employing distinctive skills and competencies to create value in all my pursuits and endeavours for sustained progress and greater glory of my alma mater, my country and society at large. So help me God.

*Engr. IfeOluwa OYEDELE, FNSE, FNIEEE, FRMN*

President (Worldwide)

University of Lagos Alumni Association