Testimonies as Salem University Holds Convocation
Last Saturday, Salem University, Lokoja, held its fourth convocation ceremony, which provided an opportunity for ex-students to share how values learnt in the institution have been guiding them through their current endeavours.
Precious Oyem was really in a fix. Agents and chieftains of political parties asked him to name his price. As a member of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), he was hired by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to serve as an electoral officer.
At stake was a vacant House of Assembly slot in one of the states. Though the results had been declared, he was being pressured to allow them thumbprint to serve as evidence at the tribunal. He knew he wasn’t going to be part of such insidious, unpatriotic act.
But then, many of his other colleagues had cooperated. Refusing the offer will not only endanger his life but also pit him against powerful forces. To accede to the inducing offer would go against his personal convictions and principles. It was more like choosing between the devil and the deep blue sea. He remembered all he learnt while on campus. “Integrity as a core value in Salem University really taught me that smartness can take a man to the top, only integrity can keep you there,” he recalled to an audience of graduating students, parents and other stakeholders of Salem University, Lokoja recently.
The audience applauded in appreciation of his courage. But the courage was not always there. It was learnt at the institution, Oyem stated. “In Salem, you are told to say no when necessary. Saying no does not mean you a bad person. It only reinforces your convictions,” he said. “That was what I did. I told them I would not do it,” he added.
Such stance, considered a hard one, by the vested political interests almost landed him in trouble. A mob attacked him with two of his colleagues. But they escaped with whiskers. He had justified his four-year study in the school. He had refused to join the bandwagon effect. The 2013 graduate of International Relations and Diplomacy said the school equipped him for such life-defining moments.