Governor Nyesom Wike, who two years ago donated N500 million to a private university set up by his predecessor, has reassured of his continued support for the university.
The donation, soon after winning a Supreme Court case, seemed to attract a second look.
Now, almost two years after, Governor Wike has stated that the state government would continue to encourage such efforts and private investors to invest their resources in the state.
Giving an address at the second matriculation ceremony of Pamo University of Medical Sciences (PUMS), Port Harcourt on Friday, the governor praised the former Rivers State governor, Peter Odili, for establishing the first and only private university in the state.
He said: “We express joy with the establishment of this University, as the first and only private University in the state. My pledge to support the growth of the university was aimed at encouraging other Rivers indigenes to make same investments in the state.”
He urged the students of the Pamo University to take their academic work seriously, so that they can contribute to the future development of the state and country.
“As students of this university, you must count yourself lucky. A degree in any field of medical science will always be in demand,” he said.
He said that the growth of the Healthcare Sector is dependent on the quality of personnel available to the system, hence the Rivers State Government has invested in the training of healthcare professionals by setting up the College of Medical Sciences at the Rivers State University and upgrading the Braithwaite Memorial Specialist Hospital to the Rivers State University Teaching Hospital.
He expressed happiness with the speed of development at the Pamo University of Medical Sciences, saying that in just 14 months, the university had made significant progress.
The governor assured the Governing Council and Management of the State Government’s continued support to ensure the sustained growth of the state.
Former Rivers State governor and pro-chancellor of Pamo University of Medical Sciences (Odili) lauded Wike for his support for the growth and sustenance of the university.
He urged students of the university to imbibe a culture of discipline and allow the training of the school mould them into health professionals with outstanding qualities.
He said: “The restrictive red lines in the school are not meant to punish the students, but to prepare them for tomorrow.”
Chancellor of the University and former Head of State, Abdulsalami Abubakar, said it was gratifying to see the progress made since the University came into existence.
He thanked the Rivers State Governor for the Special Grant to the University and scholarship to Rivers students.
Representative of the National Universities Commission, Salim said the involvement of the private sector in the education sector has positively impacted the sector and increased access to quality university education.
Vice Chancellor of Pamo University of Medical Sciences, the professor, Michael Diejamaoh, said that the university has zero tolerance for cultism, drug abuse and other vices.
