*Orji Uzor Kalu, Ikpeazu, Buratai, Ahmed Lawan, Also Among Old Boys
By Felix Durumbah, Abuja
After half a century of existing as University of Maiduguri (popularly acronymed as UNIMAID), President Bola Tinubu has renamed the University as Muhammadu Buhari University.
The name change is in honour of Nigeria’s immediate past president, Buhari, who died last Sunday. His remains were laid to rest in his hometown, Daura, Katsina State, on Wednesday.
The change of name was disclosed in a terse statement by presidential spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga, on Thursday, July 17.
Writing on his X, Onanuga stated: “President Tinubu renames University of Maiduguri as Muhammadu Buhari University. President Tinubu announced the honour at the session of tributes of the Federal Executive Council to his late predecessor.”
UNIMAID has a rich list of graduates, some of who include Vice-President Kashim Shettima; former Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Tukur Buratai; immediate past Senate President Ahmed Lawan; two former governors of Abia State, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu and Okezie Ikpeazu; and former Finance Minister, Zainab Ahmed.
Not left out are Deputy Governor of Kaduna State, Hadiza Balarabe; immediate past Federal Attorney-General and Justice Minister, Abubakar Malami; the university’s current Vice-Chancellor, Professor Mohammed Laminu Mele; and so many others.
Created by Nigeria’s Federal Military Government in 1975, UNIMAID prides itself,from inscriptions on its website, unimaid.edu.ng#, as “where the desert breathes discovery; where silence speaks wisdom and knowledge thrives.”
The university is one of the country’s main higher institutions and enrolls about 25,000 students in its comprehensive programmes including a College of Medicine and Faculties of Agriculture, Arts, Environmental Science, Allied Health Science, Basic Medical Science, Dentistry, Education, and Engineering.
A complete university, UNIMAID also posseses Faculties of Law, Management Science, Pharmacy, Science, Social Science, and Veterinary Medicine.
Benefitting from Federal Government encouragement, UNIMAID recently upped its research outreaches, especially in the fields of Agriculture, Medicine and Conflict Resolution, as well as in boosting the university press.
