Stakeholders critique leadership recruitment in Africa at Wigwe Varsity’s AR3 event

Stakeholders have challenged leadership recruitment processes across Africa, especially on the political front.

They have therefore called for more actions in support of initiatives aimed at liberating African minds across all sectors to rise to the challenge of repositioning Africa as a moral and technological superpower in the spirit of the African Renaissance.

The call was made yesterday by stakeholders and participants at the 10th edition of the African Roots Renaissance Roundtable (AR3), held at Wigwe University in Isiokpo, in Ikwerre Local Government Area of Rivers State.

The AR3 was initiated in 2015 by Nollywood legend and university don, Dr. Sam Dede. The roundtable is held annually, exploring various themes in line with its objective to reawaken the African mind and reignite the spirit of African consciousness, especially among young people.

Vice-Chancellor of the University, Professor Marwan Al-Akaidi, at the event, charged African leaders and citizens to go beyond conversations and begin to take Afro-centric actions that would reshape the future of the continent.

The conference was themed ‘Globalization, the New World Order and the Hijacked Concept of Africanism’.

At the event, which drew participants from the university community and beyond, the Vice-Chancellor said the Roundtable re-echoes the vision of the founder of Wigwe University, the late Dr Herbert Wigwe, ‘to ignite Africa’s potential for prosperity, nurture responsible fearless leaders, and become the leading university in Africa’.

The Convener, Dr Dede, said the initiative was inspired by the exigent need to confront dominant negative perceptions about Africa, illuminate young minds with new paradigms of knowledge, and empower them to go beyond boundaries in driving the true African narratives.

This, according to him, will help achieve extraordinary feats to project Africa’s preeminent position in world leadership, a position denied for several years by deeply entrenched anti-Africa chronicles.

On the theme, Dede said: “The pace of the race towards globalisation and the so-called ‘New World Order’ is extremely confusing and difficult to understand for some of us in Africa and the developing world.

“Increasingly, the continent has become a mass of ordinary spectators around a specially designed grand chessboard, manipulated and manoeuvred by ‘forces’, sometimes spiritual, whose perception of us is that of a people with very little or no value whatsoever. And by far, the grand mind game has positioned us to accept and believe the same perception and narrative about ourselves. Given that evolution will always create the need for adaptation, Africa is desperately in a frantic race to adapt to the ‘New World Order’ and globalisation, against our original concepts of traditional or cultural values and philosophies.”

In their contributions to the engaging conversation, various speakers, including Mr. Deinbofa Ere, Dr. Tayo Isijola, Dr. Kennedy Modugu, Prof. Kalu Nwosu, Dr. Henry Dienye, Dr. Ikenna Onyeachu, Mr Innocent Ekwulo, Chief Adi Wali, Dr. Gift Worlu, Mr. Emmanuel Ephraim, and Anthonia Tekuru, advocated for a redefinition of the concept of globalization to enable young Africans to locate it within the context of dignifying African values.

Director of Academic Planning, Wigwe University, Professor Chinyere Ukaga; Dean, College of Engineering, Professor Makanjuola Oki; Dean, College of Management and Social Sciences, Dr. Kennedy Modugu; Dean, Faculty of Humanities, University of Port Harcourt, Professor John Yeseibo; Professor Friday Nwafor; Curator/CEO of Moriri Gallery, Mr. Kayode Adeoti; Dr. Obari Osaro; Professor B. Chima Onuoha; renowned poet, Chijioke Amu Nnnadi; Dr. Prolific Mataruse; Dr. Ekeoma Peter Kings; and publisher of Ojemba magazine online, Victor Nwokocha, were among the notable dignitaries present at the event.

The convener applauded Wigwe University and the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Al-Akaidi, among others, for their support in making the ‘Roundtable’ a great success.