Al-Hikmah University Honours Speaker Abbas with Doctorate in

By Gloria Ikibah

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Speaker House of Representatives, Rep. Abbas Tajudeen, has been awarded an honorary doctorate degree in Public Administration by the Al-Hikmah University, Ilorin, Kwara State.

Though the degree was conferred on January 7 during the university’s 14th Convocation Lecture, Speaker Abbas was formally decorated on Thursday in his office by the institution’s founder, Dr Abdulraheem Oladimeji, and the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Noah Yusuf.

Speaker Abbas had earlier delivered the 14th Convocation Lecture on December 30, 2024, titled Beyond Oil: Exploring Alternative Revenue Potentials for Economic Growth and Sustainable Development in Nigeria. His presentation has since attracted widespread commendation from academics and economists globally.

The Al-Hikmah University delegation, led by the Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Prof. Lateef Folorunsho Oladimeji, visited the Speaker’s office to express appreciation and officially present him with his academic regalia.

The Vice-Chancellor noted that Speaker Abbas’ lecture continues to receive international recognition, further cementing his contributions to economic discourse.

“Till today, the lecture has continued to receive positive reactions from the global academic community, relevant stakeholders of the national economy and the public.”

Prof. Yusuf noted that the visit was “mainly to appreciate your distinguished personality for the honour done to our University, in particular and Kwara State, in general, by your physical presence in Ilorin exactly a month ago.”

The Vice-Chancellor said the lecture delivery by Speaker Abbas was “meticulously done to the admiration of the audience,” adding that “the quality of the Convocation Lecture has been adjudged by scholars and researchers alike as rich and first rated.”

He stated: “These records shall be preserved in our university for several years to come.”

The VC presented a proposal for ROUNDTABLE ON BEYOND OIL to Speaker Abbas, and said, “The theme of the 14th Convocation Lecture aptly addressed the current economic situation in our country and future direction.

“Consequently, it throws a serious challenge to all stakeholders in Nigeria project to take the issue further beyond the university campus to the public space through a roundtable which would be anchored by relevant government functionaries, policymakers, experts in Economics and Public Finance as well as academia.”

The Founder of Al-Hikmah University, Dr. Oladimeji, also expressed gratitude to Speaker Abbas for delivering the Convocation Lecture despite not meeting him before.

“If everybody is like you, Nigeria will be better by 100 per cent,” he said.

Responding, the Speaker hailed the founder for establishing a university despite not having higher education.

Speaker Abbas in his response said: “Indeed, today is a day of joy; it is a day of happiness that I have been found worthy by an illustrious and distinguished university like Al-Hikmah, which has a rich history of academic excellence… to have found me worthy of an honorary doctorate in Public Administration. This is something that I appreciate wholeheartedly, and I thank Almighty Allah for giving the university the wisdom to choose me from among millions of Nigerians.

“I want to categorically say, just as I said earlier during the university’s convocation lecture, that this honour has made me one of Al-Hikmah’s stakeholders for life.

“I want to thank my father (varsity’s founder) who has been a pillar of inspiration for many Nigerians. A man who has not been to a university but has been able to build a university that has graduated many professors in different fields. He is one exceptional human being that I know in this country, and I believe that Almighty God will continue to bless him, reward him, exalt him, and make him more prosperous to continue to serve humanity.”