Jonathan speaks on undergraduate days at UNIPORT

By BASSEY WILLIE

Former President Goodluck Jonathan, says nobody in his set as pioneer students at the faculty of humanities, University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT) graduated with first class degree in 1981, but members of the set have not disappointed the institution and Nigeria in their calling.

He said this when he led members of 1981 set of the institution on a visit to pioneer Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and emeritus Professor of History, Abiegberi Joe Alagoa.

Jonathan said the scholar and other lecturers grilled them well at the University and made them better citizens of the country.

He said the alumni association decide to visit the lecturer to appreciate what he and other lecturers at the University of Port Harcourt did to them from 1977 to 1981.

He said: “I remember, first set of this our class, when we are to graduate, nobody had a first class, we were surprised, we asked lecturers what happened, over 2000 that applied for admission, and you selected the best out of best, 200 to 400 of us for admission, and having grilled us for four years, nobody made the first class and Prof. A J Alagoa, replied ‘we need to test our products in the market. I hope we have not disappointed him.

“We said today, since we are meeting in Yenagoa, we have to visit our pioneer dean of humanities at the University of Port Harcourt, to appreciate what he has done to us while in school.

Responding, Prof. Alagoa, said he was delighted to receive his former students, who have made name in their chosen fields.

He said: “You are aware that University of Port Harcourt and University of Calabar were the universities that Federal Government announced together in this part of the world, but the opening of UNIPORT was a year after UNICAL, the idea was to train the best workforce, though we came a bit later than our contemporaries but from the year we start, we came to the top,” he said. (Daily Trust)