Investigatorsnews

By Ede Favour, Awka 

It was a cheering news for the Anambra State Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ, Comrade Odogwu Emeka Odogwu PhD JP as the undergraduates of the faculty of social sciences, Nnamdi Azikiwe University Awka nominated him alongside others as the performing lecturers in the department of Mass Communication. 

Records showed that from Mass Communication Department, Dr. Adaobi 

Okeke emerged in the first position, while Comrade Odogwu Emeka Odogwu, PhD came in as the 

2nd position, and Samuel Idowu Ogunbadejo, the PTA Chairman, Unizik Nursery/Primary School,Awka came in as 3rd

position.

This was announced during the Faculty of Social Sciences  End-of-Year Review and party at the faculty complex. The event was aimed at reviewing 

the performance of the lecturers in the faculty and activities of the faculty in the ending year as well as afford faculty members an opportunity to unwind and fraternize.

The list of the best performing lecturers for the year under review who received gifts from the faculty as voted by the undergraduate students were as follows:

In Mass Communication Department, Dr. Adaobi Okeke (first position), Dr. Odogwu Emeka Odogwu, PhD (2nd position), and Samuel Idowu Ogunbadejo (3rd position), while Adesua Atalor (1st position), Dr. Cynthia Udeze (2nd), and Chinenye Okafor (3rd) were rewarded in the Psychology Department. 

For Economics Department, Victor Ibeto (1st position), Dr. Chika Imogwa ( 2nd position), Dr. Mathew Okechukwu and Precious Obidigwe (joint 3rd position) received awards, 

while Dr. Ignatius Ngini was recognized as the sole awardee in the Department of Political Science.

In his review of the activities of the 

Faculty during the year, the Dean, Prof. 

Michael Ezenwa, expressed gratitude to 

faculty members for their continued 

support of his administration and the 

faculty.

 Reflecting on his nine months in 

office so far, he described the period as both exciting and challenging,

highlighting some of the activities of the 

faculty under his watch to include 

programmes to promote career excellence among faculty members, such 

as the training on publishing in high impact journals, recognition of faculty 

members with outstanding research 

visibility, and rewarding of lecturers 

found to have distinguished themselves 

in teaching and mentorship based on 

assessment by students. 

Also noted by the Dean were 

collaborations with partners like the 

Legal Aid Council of Nigeria (LACON) 

and Prisoners' Rehabilitation and 

Welfare Action (PRAWA) which has led to the ongoing process to establish a 

paralegal programme in the faculty. 

Also in the pipeline, according to Prof. 

Ezenwa, is a Social Work programme to 

be domiciled in the Faculty, while plans 

are equally on to float a Criminology 

programme. 

The Dean noted that the unbundling 

of Mass Communication Department, 

which was a key promise of his 

administration from the beginning, has 

been accomplished, as four NUC approved programmes have now 

commenced in the department while the 

Vice Chancellor has given approval for 

recruitment of 16 new lecturers to support 

the programmes.

On the faculty auditorium and its office 

spaces, Prof. Ezenwa noted that efforts are 

on to get tables and chairs for the offices 

that lack them. He thanked the office 

allocation committee for their painstaking 

j o b, while appealing for the understanding of colleagues who could 

not get offices at the auditorium given the 

limited spaces. He concluded by wishing 

all faculty members well and encouraged all to sustain their 

commitment toward the growth of the 

faculty.

One of the highlights of the event was 

presentation of awards to some deserving 

individuals including Rev. Fr. Prof. Jude 

Ezeokana, a retired former Dean of the 

Faculty, who received a long service 

award; Chief Moses Enujiugha (Ezu na 

Nri), who was recognized as a worthy 

alumnus and an ambassador of the 

faculty; and Engr Ikechukwu Okafor, the 

personal assistant to a benefactor of the faculty, Chief Chinedu Benson Madubuko who received an award as the

best friend of the Faculty.

The event also witnessed a lecture 

on healthy living by Dr. Ego Obi who 

sensitised the audience on the 

importance of healthy living through 

practices such as morning oxygen 

intake, drinking water to prevent 

dehydration and metabolic disorders, 

eating of balanced diets, exposing 

oneself to early morning sunlight, 

having sufficient rest, practicing detoxification , and  avoiding

sedentary lifestyles, among other 

practices.

The audience were also treated to 

melodious renditions by St. Cecilia 

Choir which performed both western 

classical and local chorals. 

In a vote of thanks, the co-chair of 

the organizing commiĴee, Prof. Uju 

Ezenekwe, thanked the Dean and her 

colleagues in the committee for their 

collective efforts to make the event a 

reality. He appreciated all that 

donated towards the event for their 

generosity as well as faculty members 

for making out time to grace the occasion. 

Additional report by Henry Duru.