The University for Development Studies (UDS) has conferred a Doctorate Degree (Phd) on the former President of Nigeria, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo in Tamale.
In a citation, the authorities described the former Nigerian leader as a distinguished personality and peace promoter, distinguished author and believer of democracy and a former Military General.
Chief Obasanjo have been delivering a three-day public lecture at the Dugu campus of the university on the maiden edition of African Leaders Lecture series where Dr Obasanjo blamed leaders of the continent for being responsible for the poverty and under-development faced by many African countries.
At the special congregation to honour Dr Obasanjo, on Thursday, the UDS also awarded postgraduate and undergraduate degrees to students who had successfully passed their course work.
A total of 47 medical doctors, fully trained by the UDS, were also inducted after taking their hypocritical oaths to join medical doctors in the country after going through a seven-year academic and clinical training.
The new grandaunts were the second batch of medical doctors to have been fully trained by the university through its School of Medicine and Health Sciences.
Dr Obasanjo, in his maiden speech after the honorary degree, thanked the UDS for masterminding such a special event stressing that the series of lectures established by the university was laudable.
He said it must not only be sustained but must be carried to the next level saying the medical doctors who had just graduated must remember that service to humanity was service to God.
Dr Obasanjo advised the striking doctors to remember the Judgment Day and that the earth was not the only place for humanity saying, “we are not ending here on earth, there is a day we will account for the lives of people who died as a result of our actions”.
President John Dramani Mahama congratulated the grandaunts and said a committee had been formed to work on all grievances relating to the implementation of the single spine salary structure.
He said the medical doctors, who are currently on strike, must not be worried since their concerns would be addressed alongside other workers.
He assured the UDS of government’s continues support to ensure it lived up to expectation to produce quality human resource base for the country adding that the trimester programme being run by the university was a novelty which must be supported.
Vice Chancellor of the UDS, Professor Haruna Yakubu, said the school introduced medicine into its array of programmes in 1996 and passed the first batch of medical doctors fully trained by the university last year.
He said with the support of the government, a number of infrastructure were ongoing and mentioned the anatomy laboratory construction and a students’ hostel which, he said, was half completed and encouraged private investors to liaise with the school to build more hostels.