The Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, Ignatius Kaigama, has charged graduating students of Veritas University Abuja to strive to be pacesetters in an era where there is acute shortage of wisdom.
Kaigama, who spoke at the 13th Convocation of the university in Abuja, congratulated the students for their achievements, stating that their graduation was not just the culmination of years of hard work but the beginning of a new dawn of opportunities and challenges.
While describing education as much more than acquiring knowledge, he said the importance of education lies in its transformative ability for both the individual and the community.
“As graduates of Veritas University, you must strive to be pacesetters in our communities especially in this era when there is an abundance of Information, yet there is an acute shortage of wisdom.
“You are not only educated, you are equally ethically well rooted, and the combination of these should provide you with the tools to impact the society positively.
“I expect that you will be positive ambassadors of this great institution. You must exude the Veritas confidence and the moral rectitude of Veritas,” he said.
According to him, the university prides itself in producing well-rounded graduates who are not only academically sound but are morally outstanding because of the virtues internalized by them.
He said “With a conducive environment that creates room for dedicated attention to study and a holistic formation programme, parents and guardians, from far and near, are eager to bring their children or wards here as admission becomes increasingly highly competitive.
“Those graduating today bring unquantifiable joy to us and a renewed hope that our young people who don’t give into frustration and misguided behavior, will turn out to be the hope of a rich harvest for Nigeria.”
Kaigama, who is also the Chancellor of Veritas University, praised the tremendous sacrifices made by parents and guardians, especially during these very tough economic times, to ensure that the students achieve their aims of being graduates of various disciplines.
“No doubt, each of these students must have faced unique challenges that were personal to them but in these challenges, each of them learnt resilience, adaptability, and most importantly, critical thinking. In our rapidly changing world, these skills are very germane.
“I wish to repeat what I said some years ago to graduating students of this University, quoting from St Bernard of Clairvaux who said, “There are those who seek knowledge for the sake of knowledge; that is curiosity. There are those who seek knowledge to be known by others; that is vanity. There are those who seek knowledge in order to serve; that is love,” he said.
