Radio Nigeria 2010 Annual October Lecture

Theme: Towards Free And Fair Elections 

Topic: INEC’s Action Plan

Guest: Professor Attahiru Mohammadu Jega,OFR

Date: 7th  October, 2011

Venue: Merit House, Aguiyi Ironsi Way, Maitama District, Abuja

Excerpt

It gives me immense pleasure to address this auspicious gathering on the occasion of  the  FRCN Annual October Lecture as Guest Speaker. 

In  the second    letter  of  FRCN  which communicated   to  me   the  change  of  date  of this  very  important occasion, the management  reiterated the  need   for  a collective strive  at  ensuring  credible   elections in Nigeria come  2011.  This   to, all intents and purposes,  was  in  sync  with   our   refrain  as  a  Commission to  the effect that the  responsibility  for  ensuring  credible   elections  in  Nigeria   is  not  INEC’s  alone;  it  is   a  collective one...

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Radio Nigeria 2009 Annual October Lecture

Theme: Poverty Alleviation

Topic: Solutions to the Challenge of Poverty in Nigeria

Guest: Dr. Magnus Kpakol

Date: 29th October, 2009

Venue: Merit House, Aguiyi Ironsi Way, Maitama District, Abuja

Excerpt

Poverty anywhere and everywhere is “the inability of man to control his environment and when this is the situation means is under the control of his environment with all its vicissitudes, vagaries and uncertainties of which often result in the prevalence of poverty.”

The attendant effect of this scenario is the inability of the poor to meet the challenges, the basic necessities of life which include in the main, food, clothing and shelter.

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Radio Nigeria 2008 Annual October Lecture

Topic: Food Security In Nigeria, How Close Are We?

Guest:  Professor Ango Abdullahi, CON

Date: 9th October, 2008

Venue: Merit House, Aguiyi Ironsi Way, Maitama District, Abuja

Excerpt

Let me first thank the Director General of the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN) for her gracious consideration in inviting me to give the Corporation’s “Annual October Lecture” this year. I understand that the under-pinning to the annual event is to engage Nigerians in a discourse on tropical issues concerning, and of significant interest to, the nation. Needless to say, however, there are today numerous topical subjects each of which richly worthy of being chosen for the 2008 Annual Lecture. However, in their wisdom, the organizers of this event decided that this year’s lecture should be on “Food Security”.

It is indeed true that in recent months there has been an upsurge of global rhetoric about food shortages with the attendant rise in food prices in various parts of the world, including in countries which, hitherto, were regarded as food secure. Reactions to the recent global food crisis included violent mass protests in several countries. In other situations of more sobre reflections world leaders in general resorted to the now age old appeals calling for urgent action to cope with the serious challenges posed by food insecurity in various parts of the globe, especially in developing countries...

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Radio Nigeria 2007 Annual October Lecture

Topic: Servant Leadership: Living The Pledge

Guest: Professor Pat Utomi

Date: 2nd October, 2007

Venue: National Institute for International Affairs (NIIA) ,  Lagos

Excerpt

Allow me to take advantage of this opportunity to wish you happy Independence Day.  I ask that you kindly permit me to suggest a profitable way of celebrating our dear country’s birthday: deep reflection on why there is such a gap between the promise of 1960 and the ‘reality of 2007 regarding nation building and the quality of life of the average Nigerian.

I will dare to assume that one outcome of such a reflection would include thoughts about the crisis of leadership that has dogged our post-independence history.  To say this, however, is to assume that there is a common understanding of what leadership means. Indeed, if the idea or concept of leadership has a problem it is the tendency for people to confuse being in positions of power or authority with being a leader...

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