Niger Delta students enrolled under the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP) in the United Kingdom have bestowed an Award of Appreciation on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, applauding what they termed his far-reaching and catalytic support for the initiative.
The recognition was conferred during a high-level engagement in London, where the scholars, drawn from various undergraduate and postgraduate institutions, credited the administration with widening the aperture of opportunity through expanded foreign and local scholarship placements.
Standing in for the President, the Minister of Information, Mohammed Idris, received the plaque and conveyed the government’s appreciation, describing the gesture as a “resounding endorsement” of ongoing efforts to recalibrate youth empowerment in the Niger Delta.
He noted that the PAP remains a strategic lever for social stabilisation and human capital accretion, adding that the Federal Government is resolute in deepening educational access and skills acquisition across the region.
The colloquium-style gathering was convened by the PAP Administrator, Dennis Brutu Otuaro, on the margins of the President’s state visit to the UK, drawing a cross-section of stakeholders and diaspora representatives.
In a parallel honour, the students decorated Otuaro with the “Face of Niger Delta Human Capital Development and Empowerment Award,” citing his stewardship and reform-driven posture in repositioning the programme.
Some beneficiaries, who spoke at the session, characterised the scheme as “profoundly life-altering,” noting that it has furnished them with global exposure and intellectual capital to drive change in their home communities.
The event also attracted a constellation of dignitaries, including the Minister of State for Petroleum, Heineken Lokpobiri; Special Assistant on the Niger Delta to the Office of the National Security Adviser, Goodluck Ebelo; and the Special Assistant on Diaspora Matters to the Delta State Governor, Gloria Aghaghovia.
Officials of the Ijaw People’s Association Great Britain and Ireland, alongside other Niger Delta groups, were also in attendance at the event, which underscored the growing nexus between education, diaspora engagement, and regional development.
