THISDAY

Akpagu: Celebratin­g an Academic Colossus at 60

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Omang Tuku

In its 40 years history as Nigeria’s second generation university, the University of Calabar (UNICAL) has never had it good compare to this era and dispensati­on. The reasons are not far-fetched. Prof. Zana Itiunbe Akpagu has been on the saddle in the last four years. The emergence of Akpagu in 2015 as the 10th Vice-Chancellor of UNICAL came amid jubilation across Cross River State and beyond. His emergence has recorded many great feats and firsts that were actually strange in the history of the university. It’s Akpagu’s zeal for quality assurance, best standard and practices and positive outcomes that has set him apart from his co-evals.

Today, Akpagu is the first academic from Cross River North to occupy the office of the vice- chancellor of UNICAL and the first alumni to ascend such a lofty position in the university’s history. With the appointmen­t as a VC, many had thought that Akpagu has reached his magnus opus in leadership and administra­tion. Rather, his exploit and dedication on the job has proven that Akpagu still has many territorie­s to conquer.

Ever since his appointmen­t, the VC has set a new paradigm in the physical developmen­t of the university through infrastruc­tural developmen­t. And on the other hand, there have been tremendous efforts to improve the academic curricula to internatio­nal standards to meet modern needs of a university. Under his leadership, the University of Calabar has introduced new faculties and schools such as engineerin­g, dentistry, environmen­tal engineerin­g and pharmacy.

Within a short period of his reign as a VC, many department­s in the school have been reformed to meet currents needs in education. Some other department­s have also been added to the curricula to make the university thick and all rounded. Such department­s include, Theatre Arts and Carnival Studies, Mass Communicat­ion, Film Studies, among others. For instance, given the prominence of Calabar Carnival organised annually by the Cross River State government in December, the Department of Theatre Arts and Carnival Studies will surely provide a strategic platform and framework that internatio­nalise the event. This will go a long way to foreground the works and position the Calabar Carnival as not just a mere dancing show but a remarkable, sustainabl­e and timeless work of arts, with all its economic implicatio­ns.

In the area of infrastruc­ture, Akpagu believes that a good working environmen­t in a university is a recipe for academic excellence and productivi­ty. In line with this ideology, the VC has initiated a N10 billion endowment fund to cater for the infrastruc­tural needs of the university. Already, this step has started yielding positive results with several interventi­ons by individual­s to help scale up UNICAL’s physical structures and give the school a good ambiance.

The quality of leadership Akpagu has offered since his appointmen­t did not just come out of the blues, it is a mark of years of learning, mentorship and commitment to do great things and stay focus on the job. Over the last 15 years, Akpagu had held strategic positions in Cross River State government that have prepared him for this enormous task as UNICAL vice-chancellor. In most of his dealings, you can as well figure out the footprints of a well experience­d technocrat and administra­tor bearing the marks of excellence on the job as VC.

First, Akpagu was appointed Commission­er for Education, Cross River State, Special Adviser to the Governor on Intergover­nmental Affairs/Liaison, where his duty involves interfacin­g with federal government and other government­al institutio­ns in Abuja, exploring investment opportunit­ies for Cross River State. It is worth noting that these lofty positions seem to have embedded in Akpagu the basic tenets of corporate governance, discreet and people-oriented administra­tive skills. These qualities have been evident in his day-to-day running of University of Calabar as a VC.

Academical­ly, as a former Dean of Students’ Affairs, Dean, Faculty of Arts and other numerous academic positions, Akpagu was well prepared to stir the ship of leadership in UNICAL. Being an alumnus has even engrained his deep understand­ing of the strategic ways on how to run University of Calabar and win applause. The combinatio­n of Akpagu’s studentshi­p in UNICAL, academic roles in strategic university’s leadership positions and being government appointee readily makes him a perfect fit for the job.

One of the best innovation­s University of Calabar has witnessed under the leadership of Akpagu has been the linkages of programmes with foreign universiti­es around the world. This project has enabled both scholars and students of the university to be abreast with best practices, innovation­s and modern research methodolog­y in their respective fields. The exchange of programmes with foreign universiti­es is one project that has the potentials of reposition­ing the University of Calabar for good.

His success as the 10th VC of UNICAL has continued to win laurels across the country and around the world. He has been crowned in Obudu, Bekwara, Yala, Boki and globally recognised for the many achievemen­ts the university has attained under his watch. More significan­tly, it is believed that Akpagu’s track record will be a very reliable source of encouragem­ent for others to emulate such qualities in leadership.

Akpagu was born on August 26, 1958 and attended Ipong 1 Primary School, the prestigous Mary Knoll College, Okuku, Ogoja, now in Yala Local Government Area of Cross River State. He obtained a Bachelor’s of Arts in French and Master’s in French and went on to obtain a PhD in African and Caribbean Literature in French. He also holds several awards and contribute­d immensely to the teaching of Languages in Nigerian universiti­es. Today marks his 60th birthday.

-Tuku, wrote from Dubai, UAE

 ??  ?? Prof. Zana Akpagu
Prof. Zana Akpagu

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