Sixteen beneficiaries of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP) overseas postgraduate scholarship scheme have successfully completed their master’s degree programmes at universities in the United States and the United Kingdom, with four of them graduating with distinction.
The PAP Administrator, Dr Dennis Brutu Otuaro, attributed the academic achievements to the sustained support of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, saying the successes reflect the Federal Government’s commitment to human capital development in the Niger Delta.
The graduates studied in diverse fields, including software engineering, oil and gas, data science and engineering, financial management, law, construction engineering management, global public health, and other specialised disciplines.
The four scholars who graduated with distinction are Nina Orubebe (Financial Management), Tonbra Tonlagha (International Hospitality and Tourism), Kemien Egbekun (Law), and Simon Douye (Construction Engineering Management).
The students graduated from several prestigious institutions, including Carnegie Mellon University, Coventry University, Manchester Metropolitan University, the University of Dundee, Anglia Ruskin University, the University of Bedfordshire, Aston University, the University of Cambridge, the University of South Wales, and Northumbria University.
According to the programme, PAP under Dr Otuaro’s leadership has produced 111 master’s and doctoral degree holders since he assumed office in March 2024. Of the figure, 57 graduated from universities outside Nigeria, while 54 obtained their higher degrees from institutions within the country.
Reacting to the latest achievement, Dr Otuaro congratulated the scholars for successfully completing their programmes within schedule, describing their accomplishments as another milestone in the agency’s drive to build a highly skilled workforce for the Niger Delta.
He said the performance of PAP scholarship beneficiaries, both within Nigeria and abroad, had continued to justify the Federal Government’s investment in education.
The PAP Administrator stated that the expansion of the scholarship scheme aligns with President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which seeks to bridge the human capital development gap in the Niger Delta.
He also dismissed what he described as “frivolous smear campaigns” by detractors opposed to the expansion of educational opportunities for youths in the region, insisting that the programme would not be distracted from its mandate.
“Our decision to expand the scholarship scheme is anchored on the massive support and strong desire of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to bridge the region’s human capital development gap under the Renewed Hope Agenda,” Otuaro said.
“We will not succumb to the frivolous activities of mischief makers and detractors because many of them are not happy that we have increased educational scholarship chances for poor Niger Deltans based on the mandate of the President.
“This new set of 16 successful overseas postgraduate students sponsored by the PAP has reinforced the Federal Government’s investment in the Niger Delta youths’ education to enhance sustainable peace and socio-economic advancement in the region.”
He added that the programme would continue to implement President Tinubu’s mandate for the Niger Delta, stressing that “no amount of blackmail and campaigns of calumny” would derail its objectives.
Otuaro expressed gratitude to President Tinubu and the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, for their support, noting that both leaders were helping to lay a solid foundation for peace, stability and shared prosperity in the Niger Delta.
He disclosed that since assuming office, the PAP has awarded about 9,000 undergraduate and postgraduate scholarships in Nigerian universities and 247 scholarships for higher degree programmes in overseas institutions.
