By; ADAMA JOHN, Lokoja
As the Federal University Lokoja marked the second memorial lecture of Dr. Joseph Oyeyani Makoju on Wednesday, his family has promised to build a large lecture theatre for the ivory tower and give scholarship to outstanding students.
An indigene of Kogi State, Engineer Joseph Makoju, was Special Adviser to three Nigerian Presidents on Electricity and Power and held various positions in defunct National Electricity Power Authority.
At the second memorial lecture of the Federal University, Lokoja, the late Makoju was variously praised for his notable intellectual prowess, diligence, hard work, profound humility and his service to the nation.
He was reputed to have successfully midwifed the reforms that ushered in the private sector in the generation and distribution of electricity power in Nigeria and was the immediate past group managing director of Dangote Cement PLC .
Makoju was described as a man who dedicated his entire life to providing the necessary infrastructure for economic development for the nation in addition to providing selfless services to mankind.
In her response to various goodwill messages, the elated wife of the deceased, Dr Gladys Makoju described her husband as a gentle, caring and disciplined man who served the nation selflessly without any record of misdeed and promised to keep the legacy of the late sage.
While thanking Federal University Lokoja for organising the memorial lecture, she disclosed that the family will build a large lecture theatre for the school and give scholarship to outstanding PHD students in engineering.
In his opening remarks earlier, the Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof. Olayemi Akinwumi extolled the sterling qualities, saying that the late Dr. Makoju has done so much to serve his father land and positively impacted on several lives seamlessly.
Accordingly to the Vice Chancellor, Engineer Makoju’s passion for quality education and pursuit for excellence was remarkable, adding that the university has decided to organise the annual lecture to honour him and to encourage students in the country that there’s honour in hard work and honesty.
In his message, Governor Usman Ododo who was represented by the Commissioner of Education, Wemi Jones described Engineer Makoju as a man of great accomplishments, who made the state proud during his life time.
He said that it is in appreciation of his hard work that the state government established a university of science and technology in his home town to train the youth that will make the state proud in future, just as the late Makoju did in his chosen profession.
The second memorial lecture titled, “the challenges of infrastructure development in Nigeria– the need for adequate Engineering capacity ” was delivered by the former Registrar, Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN) Dr. Felix Atume.
Dr Atume in his paper, said that infrastructure provides the basis for the development of any nation adding that where adequate infrastructure is available, society is productive and can sustain a high standard of living.
The lecturer expressed the urgent need for federal government to include indigenous Engineers in all its infrastructural development endeavours which are currently being handled by foreign expatriates as he warned that no nation develops while neglecting its own locally trained experts.
He believes that any nation that ignores its university research works will be in limbo, asserting that there’s no problem in the country that Professors in our various universities have not proffered solutions to , but for lack of political will of leadership in the country.
While calling on the federal government to embark on Public Private Partnership in the construction and maintenance of some of its road infrastructure in the country, he opined that government alone can not do it even as he frowned at the huge foreign debts incurred with little development to show for it.
