Western Delta University in Oghara is set to mark a significant academic milestone this Saturday, November 15, 2025, as it conducts its 15th convocation ceremony for the 2024/2025 academic session.
Ceremony Details and Schedule
According to an official statement released by E. O. Ofotokun, the Acting Registrar of the institution, the event will recognize outstanding students through the conferment of degrees, diplomas, and various academic prizes.
Graduating students have been instructed to collect their academic gowns and invitation cards before the event. All graduands must be seated by 9:30 a.m., while guests are expected to take their positions by 10:00 a.m.
The day's activities will commence with project commissioning at 10:30 a.m., followed by the Convocation Lecture at 11:00 a.m.. The lecture will be delivered by Professor Kyari Mohammed, former Vice-Chancellor of both Modibbo Adama University of Technology and Nigerian Army University, Biu.
Honorary Awards for Distinguished Nigerians
The highlight of the ceremony, scheduled between 12:00 noon and 2:00 p.m., will feature the conferment of honorary degrees and presentation of academic awards.
The university will bestow honorary doctorate degrees upon two eminent Nigerians: Prince Adewale Adebayo, a legal practitioner, philanthropist, and former presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party in the 2023 general elections, and General Abdulrahman Bello Dambazau (rtd), former Chief of Army Staff and Minister of Interior.
Prince Adebayo will receive a Doctor of Political Science (Honoris Causa), while General Dambazau will be honored with a Doctor of Strategic Studies (Honoris Causa).
General Dambazau's Distinguished Career
Born on March 14, 1954, General Dambazau began his military journey when he was commissioned into the Nigerian Army Infantry in June 1977 after completing cadet training at the Nigerian Defence Academy.
Over his remarkable three-decade career, he held numerous strategic positions including:
- Registrar of the Nigerian Defence Academy
- Principal General Staff Officer to the Minister of Defence
- Chief Instructor, Support Weapons at the Infantry Centre
- Chief of Army Standards and Evaluation
- General Officer Commanding 2 Division
His military service culminated in his appointment as Chief of Army Staff from August 2008 to September 2010.
General Dambazau's educational background is equally impressive. He earned multiple degrees at Kent State University, Ohio, between 1980 and 1984, including a BSc in Criminal Justice Studies, MA in Political Science, and M.Ed in Higher Educational Administration. He completed his PhD in Criminology at the University of Keele, UK, in 1989.
After retiring from military service, he transitioned into politics, serving as Director of Security for the CPC in the 2011 elections and holding the same role for the APC Presidential Campaign Councils in 2015 and 2019. From November 2015 to May 2019, he served as Minister of Interior, where he supervised significant reforms across the Prisons Service, Immigration Service, Civil Defence Corps, and Federal Fire Service.
The former army chief maintains affiliations with several global criminology and security organizations and serves as a director with the International Police Executive Symposium. He is married with children and holds the traditional title of Baraden Kano.
