The award winning author, Mr. Dike Chukwumerije, will on Friday deliver the Second Western Delta University, Oghara, Convocation Lecture. Chukwumerije’s novel, Urichindere, won the Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA) 2013 Prize for Prose Literature.

The Vice-Chancellor of the Western Delta University (WDU), Prof. (Mrs) O. C. Okobiah, said in a statement that the multi-talented Chukwumerije is also a “Spoken Word and Performance Poetry” artiste, and his poetry theatre production “Made In Nigeria” has been touring the nation.

In the statement signed by the WDU Public Relations Officer, Miss. Tetsoma Omawumi-Eyinla, Prof Okobiah said that “Chukwumerije’s creative mind which has opened up totally new areas in the arts and performance, is the real reason why he merited the high honour of mounting the WDU podium to deliver its second Convocation Lecture.

The highly-regarded intellectual and social activist, Professor Julius Ihonvbere, who had worked at the globally renowned Ford Foundation before he became a Special Adviser (Policy and Programmes Monitoring) in Chief Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration, delivered the first WDU Convocation Lecture.  Ihonvbere also wrote some of Obasanjo’s speeches and was a member of the Niger Delta Technical Committee.  He was also Head of the Department of Political and Administrative Studies, University of Port Harcourt.

This time, Chukwumerije, a motivational speaker, was chosen so that he could direct the graduands’ minds towards facing entrepreneurial challenges successfully”.

Prof. Okobiah said: “The Western Delta University is geared towards preparing students to be independent-minded and to be able to identify opportunities, take advantage of such chances to become self-employed and employers of labour. We prepare them to be fully equipped academically so that they can compete favourably anywhere in the world. We train them also to have large social consciences so that they will be inspired to change the things they find unacceptable. We prepare them to make the world a better place.”

Also, on Friday, former Justice of the Supreme Court, Hon Justice Francis F. Tabai, who is the Chairman of the WUD Board of Trustees, will inaugurate Obong Victor Attah, the former governor of Akwa-Ibom state, as the Chancellor of Western Delta University.  The BoT is made up of highly accomplished persons, including Prof Joseph Otubu, Senator Nenadi Usman, Efe Akpofure (SAN) Mrs. Christie Ibori-Ibie, Chief Grace Akpoguma and Emeritus Prof. Andrew Onokerhoraye, who was a Vice-Chancellor of the University of Benin.