Vice Chancellor’s Press Conference on the Occasion of the 7th Convocation Ceremony of Augustine University, Ilara-Epe, Lagos State, Nigeria; on Thursday, 30th October, 2025.

 

Ladies and gentlemen of the Press,

On behalf of the Governing Council, Senate, Staff and Students of Augustine University, I warmly welcome you to this Press Conference in preparation for the 7th Convocation Ceremony of the University.

A university has a vital role to play in the life of a people.  That is especially true in the life of our beloved country Nigeria with her numerous developmental needs.  Our country is full of potential.  Her sons and daughters are capable of achieving great things.  Nigerians are known to excel in various spheres of human endeavour.

The role of a university is to form citizens who will actualize their potential by working for the actualization of our collective potential, and a developed polity is an aggregate of citizens of actualized potential.

For centuries, the Catholic Church has been known for its role in education.  For the past ten years, thanks to the huge investments of the Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos, and the generosity of her many benefactors, Augustine University has been playing the role of furnishing her graduates with the competence they need to work for their personal and our societal actualization of potential so that our country can stand tall in the comity of nations.

This year’s Convocation Ceremony is an occasion to celebrate the accomplishments of our graduating students, and the accomplishments of Augustine University.  A total of 148 students are obtaining their first degrees, while 21 are obtaining a diploma.

Of this number, 22 are graduating in the First Class, 57 in the Second Class Upper Division, 57 in the Second Class Lower Division, and 12 in the Third Class.

Given the high quality of academic service delivery at Augustine University, it can be asserted that we are graduating a group of excellent students who have lived up to the reputation of this University as a place of education with technical and ethical intent and content.  At Augustine University, we recognize that Nigeria’s developmental needs will be met, not only by technocrats, but by technocrats with ethical competence.   We equally recognize the fact that an outstanding personality is a man or woman who stands out in a crowd of achievers.  And so, while we salute the accomplishments of our 148 graduating students, it gives us great joy to recognize and to announce that our overall best graduating student is Miss Anne Ifeoluwa Adeyera, with a Cumulative Grade Point Average of 4.90 in Biochemistry.

        While congratulating our graduands, and wishing them ‘ad maiorem’, our appreciation goes to all who have created and continue to sustain an enabling environment for these accomplishments: the Emeritus Catholic Archbishop of Lagos, His Eminence Anthony Cardinal Okogie, the Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos under the leadership of the Most Rev. Alfred Adewale Martins, the Board of Trustees, the Governing Council, the Staff of the University, all Benefactors and Friends of the University.

This University began ten years ago with 55 students.  Now there are over 1,200 students enrolled, and many more are showing interest.  Among those first 55 graduands of this University, let me single out David Nwachukwu, who recently completed his Doctoral Studies in Medical Microbiology at the University of Port Harcourt, and who now lectures at the Pamo University of Medical Sciences, Port Harcourt, Rivers State.  History will know him as the first university lecturer to have graduated from Augustine University.

 

For us, it is not time to rest but time to do even more so that Augustine University will continue to intensify its efforts to play the role of engine room of development that a university ought to be.

        Ladies and Gentlemen of the Press, I thank you for listening.

 

Rev. Father Professor Anthony Alaba Akinwale, OP, STM

Vice Chancellor

 

 

 

AUGUSTINE UNIVERSITY

 

(The Catholic University of Lagos Archdiocese) 

P.M.B. 1010,

ILARA-EPE 106101, LAGOS STATE, NIGERIA

 

 

Vice Chancellor’s Press Conference on the Occasion of the 7th Convocation Ceremony of Augustine University, Ilara-Epe, Lagos State, Nigeria; on Thursday, 30th October, 2025.

 

Ladies and gentlemen of the Press,

On behalf of the Governing Council, Senate, Staff and Students of Augustine University, I warmly welcome you to this Press Conference in preparation for the 7th Convocation Ceremony of the University.

A university has a vital role to play in the life of a people.  That is especially true in the life of our beloved country Nigeria with her numerous developmental needs.  Our country is full of potential.  Her sons and daughters are capable of achieving great things.  Nigerians are known to excel in various spheres of human endeavour.

The role of a university is to form citizens who will actualize their potential by working for the actualization of our collective potential, and a developed polity is an aggregate of citizens of actualized potential.

For centuries, the Catholic Church has been known for its role in education.  For the past ten years, thanks to the huge investments of the Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos, and the generosity of her many benefactors, Augustine University has been playing the role of furnishing her graduates with the competence they need to work for their personal and our societal actualization of potential so that our country can stand tall in the comity of nations.

This year’s Convocation Ceremony is an occasion to celebrate the accomplishments of our graduating students, and the accomplishments of Augustine University.  A total of 148 students are obtaining their first degrees, while 21 are obtaining a diploma.

Of this number, 22 are graduating in the First Class, 57 in the Second Class Upper Division, 57 in the Second Class Lower Division, and 12 in the Third Class.

Given the high quality of academic service delivery at Augustine University, it can be asserted that we are graduating a group of excellent students who have lived up to the reputation of this University as a place of education with technical and ethical intent and content.  At Augustine University, we recognize that Nigeria’s developmental needs will be met, not only by technocrats, but by technocrats with ethical competence.   We equally recognize the fact that an outstanding personality is a man or woman who stands out in a crowd of achievers.  And so, while we salute the accomplishments of our 148 graduating students, it gives us great joy to recognize and to announce that our overall best graduating student is Miss Anne Ifeoluwa Adeyera, with a Cumulative Grade Point Average of 4.90 in Biochemistry.

        While congratulating our graduands, and wishing them ‘ad maiorem’, our appreciation goes to all who have created and continue to sustain an enabling environment for these accomplishments: the Emeritus Catholic Archbishop of Lagos, His Eminence Anthony Cardinal Okogie, the Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos under the leadership of the Most Rev. Alfred Adewale Martins, the Board of Trustees, the Governing Council, the Staff of the University, all Benefactors and Friends of the University.

This University began ten years ago with 55 students.  Now there are over 1,200 students enrolled, and many more are showing interest.  Among those first 55 graduands of this University, let me single out David Nwachukwu, who recently completed his Doctoral Studies in Medical Microbiology at the University of Port Harcourt, and who now lectures at the Pamo University of Medical Sciences, Port Harcourt, Rivers State.  History will know him as the first university lecturer to have graduated from Augustine University.

 

For us, it is not time to rest but time to do even more so that Augustine University will continue to intensify its efforts to play the role of engine room of development that a university ought to be.

        Ladies and Gentlemen of the Press, I thank you for listening.

 

Rev. Father Professor Anthony Alaba Akinwale, OP, STM

Vice Chancellor