President Goodluck Jonathan has conferred the Nigerian National Order of Merit Award on Professor Seth Sunday Ajayi, NNOM in the area of Science, Prof. Francis Abiola Irele, NNOM in the area of Humanities and Prof. Hilary Inyang Inyang, NNOM in the area of Engineering Technology.
The Award is the highest and most prestigious of its kind bestowed on outstanding, creative and talented Nigerians at home and in the Diaspora who excelled themselves in their various fields of human endevours.
While speaking at the presentation of the 2013 NNOM award, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan who was ably represented by the Vice President Namadi Sambo observed that since the inception of the award thirty four years ago, the esteem and integrity of the award have not declined, explaining that instead, the award is only bestowed on those who are adjudged to be the best in their chosen fields of endeavours, adding that so far only seventy (70) Nigerians have been conferred with the NNOM award.
The President expressed the hope that the new NNOM award recipients, like their industrious predecessors, will hold the banner of creativity, innovative and intellectual development, stressing that the nation is in dire need of their knowledge, expertise and contributions to boost the over all transformation agenda of the Government.
Earlier, the Chairman, Governing Board of the NNMA, Prof. Oluwafeyisola S. Adegoke said of more than 45 nominees evaluated by the Governing Board and four specialized committees of assess the three gentlemen and they were found to have successfully scaled the hurdles and found worthy to be conferred with the NNOM award for 2013.
He described Prof. Seth Sunday Ajayi, NNOM, as a major figure in the international community of scholars in Wildlife Conservation and Environmental protection and Management, Prof. Francis Abiola Irele, NNOM, widely known and called the “Doyen of Africanist Literary scholars worldwide” as the author of over a hundred items and is deservedly acknowledged as an authority on the Negritude movement; and Prof. Hilary Inyang Inyang, NNOM who is currently the Vice Chancellor of Botswana International University of Science and Technology (BIUST), Palapye as an acknowledged leader in research and professional areas of focus which include contaminant leaching and de-dusting of material, design of containment systems and materials for barriers, energy systems and geohazards.
He is the author of Nigerians National Oil Spill Control Manual; the environmental management framework for the Federal Capital territory of Nigeria.
While speaking further, Chairman said that the three 2013 NNOM award recipients were intellectuals who have spent their life time serving the needs of others and in the process they have raised the prestige of Nigeria high among nations of the World. He enjoined the 2013 NNOM Award recipients to continue to be the beacons of promise for the younger generations of budding researchers and to other Nigerians as well.
He called on the Federal government to establish the Nigerian National Research and Development Fund that shall be managed, on behalf of the Government by the Nigerian National Merit Award laureates, the Fellows of the five Nigerian National Academies, the Post-Graduate Medical College of Nigeria and representatives of the relevant MDA’s and private research organizations adding that such a body will stimulate the growth of developmental researchers natured and supervised by the nation’s leaders of thought.
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