By Tony Adibe
The Public Relations Officer (PPRO) of Enugu State Police Command, SP Daniel Ndukwe, has warned that cultism, with its closely associated evils such as drug abuse, examination malpractice, cybercrime, and other social vices, though often disguised as shortcuts to success, only leads to academic failure.
SP Ndukwe also said campus cultism leads to damaged reputations, criminal prosecution, and, in some cases, the loss of lives and promising futures. Ndukwe gave the warning while delivering a keynote lecture titled: “Choices, Character and Consequences: Confronting Cultism and Other Social Vices on Campus,” at the inauguration of the newly elected Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT) Students’ Union Government (SUG) Executives on Friday.
Ndukwe insisted that students should, against all odds, shun cultism and other social vices, while imbibing the culture of responsible lifestyle and leadership. The PPRO advised students to always choose their friends wisely, resist peer pressure, uphold integrity, and remember that “today’s choices become tomorrow’s consequences.”
He charged students to imbibe positive characters that would enable them to become positive “brand ambassadors” of the institution and society.” The PPRO further said that while every student enters a university or higher institution with dreams of success, those dreams are ultimately shaped by the choices they make.
The PPRO reaffirmed the commitment of the Enugu State Police Command under the leadership of the Commissioner of Police, Mr. Mamman Giwa, to ensuring a safe and secure learning environment in ESUT and other tertiary institutions in the state. He encouraged students to remain vigilant, law-abiding, and to promptly report criminal activities or suspicious persons within and around their campuses.
While congratulating the new student leadership, Ndukwe described their election as a call to selfless service, emphasising that “leadership is about influence, responsibility and leading by example”.
He challenged them to promote peace, unity, discipline, and academic excellence while working with the university management and security agencies to combat cultism, drug abuse, and other social vices on campus.
The event was declared open by the Vice-Chancellor of ESUT, Prof. Aloysius-Michaels Okolie, and attended by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Ernest Nwoha, the Provost, the Registrar, the University Librarian, the Dean of Students Affairs, other principal officers, former SUG leaders, and students.
