The National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) has reaffirmed its commitment to inclusive and accessible higher education by providing 100 per cent tuition-free education to inmates across the country.
The Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Uduma Oji Uduma, stated this while matriculating 70 inmates at the Enugu Maximum Security Custodial Centre of the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS), Enugu State, recently.
The Vice-Chancellor, who was represented by the Director of the Enugu Study Centre, Prof. Loveth O. Ekwueme, said the initiative reflected the university’s belief that education is a fundamental right and its commitment to national development, social justice and the rehabilitation of individuals deserving of a second chance.
Addressing the newly admitted students, Ekwueme said their enrolment demonstrated courage, determination and a desire to transform their lives through knowledge.
She urged them to uphold the values of scholarship, discipline and integrity, describing education as a powerful tool for personal transformation and successful reintegration into society.
As the university celebrated the matriculation, she encouraged the inmates to embrace education as a beacon of hope, a pathway to a better future and a foundation for contributing positively to national development.
In his remarks, the Deputy Controller of Corrections at the Enugu Maximum Security Custodial Centre, DCC Sunday A. Igwe, PhD, described education as a vital instrument for human development, reformation, rehabilitation, empowerment and successful reintegration into society.
Igwe said the presence and growth of NOUN’s educational programmes within the custodial centre demonstrated that learning could thrive wherever there was commitment, discipline and determination.
He also described NOUN as a leading open and distance learning (ODL) institution in the West African sub-region.
While congratulating the newly matriculated students, he commended them for choosing to invest in their future through education, describing their admission as the beginning of a new chapter in their lives.
He urged them to approach their studies with discipline, commitment, humility, integrity and perseverance to maximise the opportunities available to them.
Igwe also applauded the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Uduma Oji Uduma, for his leadership and commitment to accessible and flexible higher education, as well as the university’s continued support for the development of educational programmes in correctional centres.
The university Registrar, Mr. Oladipo Ajayi, represented by the Assistant Registrar of the Enugu Study Centre, Mr. Michael Okpara, administered the matriculation oath to the newly admitted students.
Among the dignitaries at the ceremony were the Controller-General of the Nigerian Correctional Service, Sylvester Ndidi Nwakuche, represented by Assistant Controller-General Lolo P. C. Oku; the Controller of Corrections, Enugu State Command, Mr. Valins N. Obizue; and the Head of the Library Unit at the Enugu Study Centre, Senior Librarian Dr. Grace Elem.
Representatives of other paramilitary and public safety agencies, including the Nigeria Police Force, Federal Road Safety Corps, Federal Fire Service and Nigeria Immigration Service, also attended the ceremony.
- Log in to post comments
- 732 views
