Southern Taraba Academic Forum elects new officials
Sesugh Abaya
The Southern Taraba Academic Forum (STAF), has elected fourteen (14) new officials to pilot the affairs of the union for yet another tenure of office.
The event took place on Thursday, during the Forum’s 2nd National Nominations of Executive Officers at the Taraba State Polytechnic, Jalingo campus.
The newly elected EXCO which will be inaugurated in due course is headed by Dr. Rimamde Ubandoma Joel as the new president and it is charged with the responsibility of initiating and executing educational activities, awakening passion and zeal for knowledge and propelling the desire for academic pursuit among the people within the southern region of Taraba State.
Addressing the mammoth crowd that turned up for the event, the newly inaugurated president, Dr. Rimamde Ubandoma Joel, appreciated God for granting him and the other new officials the rare privilege to serve humanity.
Dr. Rimande commended all members of the organization for the trust they have in him and his led EXCO by giving them the mandate to pilot the affairs of the organization.
He further lauded the efforts of the pioneers of the prestigious organization as well as other past leaders who had over time, held tight to the ford to sustain the tremendous progress of the organization and pledged that his led EXCO would consolidate on their efforts to take the organization to a greater height.
“We will leverage on the efforts of our past leaders to ensure movement of people to great echelons in the education industry. We also want to assure you that we will try by all means to increase the visibility of the organization in the zone.
“We will established and encourage the desire for education among the people of this zone. We want to assure you that we will work together to deliver effectively the mandate you have given unto us”. He added.
Quoting from the words of Nelson Mandela who once said, “education is a great instrument in the development of mankind”, Dr. Rimande emphasized that the organization under his leadership would give priority to education so as to give power to the people of the area.
The Doctor further encouraged Nigerians to take a cue from the Indians quest for knowledge which he noted was evident through their academic drive that gave them an edge over others in terms of global leadership, maintaining that many Indians were occupying public offices globally due to their unquenchable quest for knowledge.
In his closing remark, Rev. Father Anthony Bature, who served as the electoral committee chairman, advised the new president, Dr. Rimamde to always carry everyone along as he had promised and to avoid grudges and build the spirit of unity among the people.
The man of God also encouraged the newly elected leaders to be visionary and strategic in their approaches and to always put in place workshops and seminars to build capacity of the people.
In his words; “be innovative in terms of project initiation and be rest assured that you will have the required support. People are always looking up for things they can support but if you don’t come up with something, they cannot give you anything.”
He assured the new EXCO of his unalloyed support, assuring members that the organization would continue to live up to its responsibilities and expectations.
Meanwhile, the event brought together people of top academic echelons including Professors, Associate professors, Doctors of philosophies and other cadres across various high institutions both within and outside the state capital.
