ADDRESS PRESENTED BY THE PRESIDENT, STUDENTS’ UNION GOVERNMENT, UNIVERSITY OF UYO, COMRADE DUFF, GABRIEL ON THE OCCASION OF HIS INAUGURATION ON TUESDAY 8TH AUGUST, 2017, AT ONYEMA UGOCHUKWU HALL

PROTOCOL.
I feel honoured and grateful to Almighty God who has chosen me through Nigerian students to address this prestigious gathering today, in this reputable capacity.

Indeed, He has the final say. I crave your indulgence to accommodate few remarks,
standing here as a product of grace, for the task before us, grateful for the trust bestowed on us and mindful of the sacrifices of the students in respective faculties.

Having sworn before you, permit me to use this platform once again to reaffirm that your efforts will never be a cry in the wilderness.

I must appreciate the effort of the vice Chancellor, Prof. Enefiok Essien (SAN), Dean of Student Affairs, Dr. Mrs. Isongesit Solomon, the Electoral Board and entire management of the University, as well as security operatives, for ensuring a free, fair and credible contest, which has proven the existence of democracy in the university community and the union particularly.
I am delighted to welcome our guests and past student leaders of the union in our midst, who have come to grace this occasion, despite their tight schedules.

If their presence explains anything, it is the height of their commitment, loyalty and dedication to our union.

I am indeed gratified at this level of participation of members, which clearly demonstrates our continuous hope, belief, collective wishes and determination to
strengthen the dignity of our dear union.

Let me applaud the achievements and contributions of our predecessors thus far to the students’ welfare and development. We pledge to build on all your efforts and
consolidate on the outcomes of your struggles.

I salute the friendly dispositions of my comrades, Kufre Nicholas, Kufre Okon and Ekemini wholesome who contested the presidency of the union alongside my
humble self. We matched the field as sister and brothers, but we succeeded in solidarity. It was indeed a significant
race.

We have all emerged victorious as our democratic experience has redefined our history as people with shared values.
I humbly sue your willingness to drive our common aims. Irrespective of our divergent views, our plans are auspicious and propitious, hence, we must collectively stand ready to implement them.

It would be incongruous, if I fail to acknowledge the overwhelming support and confidence expressed by you,
Nigerian students. I immensely owe you nothing but due delivery upon every word as contained in our campaign agenda.

Great Nigerian Students!
The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit, to choose our better history, to carry forward that precious
gift, those bold ideas passed on by our predecessors. We shall pursue our full measure of happiness as students. In
accomplishing these, we solicit continuous partnership and understanding with the management through dialogue, as this administration will not play politics with the welfare of students.

You would agree with me that our union has gone through difficult moments, owing to vested interests. But today, I put it to you that these challenges are real, serious, and enormous. They may not be met in a short while but certainly, a journey of a thousand miles begins
with a step. Today, we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.

We have come to proclaim an end to grievances and deceits. Henceforth, we must pull ourselves up by our bootstraps
and begin the work of remodeling our union for everywhere we look, there is work to be done. Therefore, this administration is poised to addressing major challenges such as:
STUDENTS' WELFARE: We will partner with the management to enhance conducive hostels, replacement
of worn out facilities, fumigation, supply of constant electricity, washing of water tanks, regulation of food prices and quality, etc.

SECURITY CHALLENGES: This administration will enhance the security of lives and property of our students
and will put to use all due processes to achieve applaudable security situation on various campuses. Intimidation and
harassment of students shall be a threat of the past.

Our administration is set to launch suggestion boxes in the thirteen (13) faculties, to collect opinions with a view
to identifying our major challenges.
We pledge to redeem the image of the union. As such, never again shall our seat of authority (the Community Centre), be used as badminton court and for other ignoble activities, Uniuyo is a brand and her image, we must protect it.

To bring the government closer to the governed, we shall partner with Uniuyo FM to periodically inform the students on “The State of the Union”.

Never again shall issues of information be treated with levity as this administration has concluded plans to launch an-official students’ blog.

Launching of Wi-Fi in Hostels at affordable rates is not left out of the plans of this administration.

It would be ungrateful, if I fail to commend my campaign team. Sincerely, I appreciate your sacrifices, assistance,
formidable structure and co-operation which resulted in our victory. Thank you! History shall not forget you.

To my fellow Executive Council members, I charge you all to live up to expectations. To my distinguished senators, what is required in this new era of responsibilities is cooperation and commitment.

Constitutionally, we are separated in arms, but co-operatively we shall work to
actualize the goals of our union. It is incumbent on us to realize that we have duties to ourselves and the union; duties we seized gladly, therefore, we must know that nothing is so satisfying to the spirit and so defining of our character than giving our best to the tasks ahead.

Fellow Nigerian students, I implore you to be good ambassadors of this citadel of learning, not loosing sight on our academics which is our primary aim. The world has changed, our union has changed and we must change accordingly.

In the words of Martin Luther, “We may have come in different boats, but definitely, we are in the same ship
now”. It is obvious that challenges await us, but as implied by Audrey Hepburn, “I do not believe in collective guilt but in collective responsibility”.

To part with, I am indeed grateful to all and sundry for making out time to grace this occasion. I pray God Almighty to grant you journey mercies to your various destinations in Jesus Name.

Together we achieve more!
We are grace carriers; we cannot come in contact with grace and suffer disgrace. indeed, power belongs to God.

Long Live Tuskers' Republic!
Long Live University of Uyo!
Aluta Continua!