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2014-2015 Nugs-russia, The Dawn Of A New Era.

By NUGS Russia
Diaspora News 2014-2015 Nugs-russia, The Dawn Of A New Era.
MAY 25, 2015 LISTEN

The annual NUGS-RUSSIA congress is an occasion that brings all Ghanaian students studying in the various tertiary institutions together once a year to feast and to celebrate the ideals of nationalism that underscores our ambassadorship as Ghanaians in a foreign land. The program is also aimed towards re-uniting Ghanaian students, and to give a platform to our elected executives to account for the several happenings during their term of office. It is also during congress that election results are declared and newly elected executives sworn in for the union.

This year’s congress took place in St. Petersburg, a city blessed with both aesthetic and natural beauty. It was an eventful, well packaged and organized program which started from 1st to 3rd May, this year.All members of NUGS were eagerly anticipating the commencement of this congress not only because the venue has been shifted from Moscow- the capital, to this historic and beautiful city but also the programs on the bill were extremely inviting. There was the maiden edition of the NUGS-Russia honors awarded to well deserving students who have excelled in various fields, the finale of the inter-states debate competition, the side attraction such as touring the most beautiful city in Russia and the most important event on the bill that is declaration of electoral results.

Fast forward and it was 1st May, the arrival day for the congress and the hosting city was in an all expectant and welcoming mood. The program kicked off with a welcome address by the national president – Mohamed Alhassan. The next event was the much awaited grand finale of the NUGS-Russia inter-states debate between Tambov and Volgograd states. The debate competition was an intellectual exercise that was organized to help students digest, deliberate and come up with solutions to the existing socio-economic and political problems facing Ghana. Again it gave us an appropriate platform for member states to engage in a friendly competition with keen interest that breeds unity and solidarity. Proceeds from the debate competition were channeled to a very charitable cause called “Doctor’s Act”.

In all, 16 states partook in the competition and they all gave their best but when the going got tough, the tough got going. The two finalists Ohene Bright from Volgograd and Nana Kwesi from Tambov were given the opportunity to battle it out in front of our anxious members and on the motion “The people, not public officers are to blame for the corruption problems in Ghana”. It was a very competitive contest and a tough call for the judges who awarded a slim victory to Volgograd. A special thanks to judges who have been with us from the beginning of the competition. To Judges Prof H. K. Prempeh, Patrick K. Stephenson, Vinho Odaire and Baffour Boateng, we say a big thank you for making time out of their busy schedules to contribute to the success of this competition.

The final event on 1st May was the maiden edition of NUGS-Russia Honors 2015. It was a very entertaining event and some of the winners on the night were; Student Entrepreneur-Daniel Kwakye Nomah, most Influential Student(female)-Joannishka Janey, most Influential(male)-Amin Yakubu, best local union-Ryazan, best DJ-DJ Cimao and a host of others.

The second day of congress began with the touring of the city. We did that through boat riding and visiting interesting sites. It was a wonderful experience and nature is indeed beautiful. The next program on the bill was women’s conference which was chaired by Eugenia Boadi and the deputy ambassador Mrs. Lydia Amartey. The program was very educative and we deliberated on how women can be emboldened and become successful in whatever field they find themselves including their relationships and marriages. Our able consular, Mr. Mawuli Klu was there to also give us insight on this issue.

At this point in time everyone was anxiously awaiting the results of the much publicized NUGS-Russia general elections 2015. An injunction was placed on the result declaration by the judicial committee due to some irregularities that occurred during the elections. That was the only minus that characterized an already eventful congress. The closing remark was given by the deputy ambassador and the vote of thanks by the president of NUGS-Petersburg George Agyeah. We are very grateful to our deputy ambassador and consular for being with us throughout the congress. They depicted motherly and fatherly love, for that we are grateful.

Issues regarding the declaration of results did not end at the congress and when the injunction was lifted, the electoral commission released the results. There are no elections without agitations and disappointments but all parties handle it with maturity and accepted the outcome. The results showed the following people were entrusted to take the mantle and lead the union for the next academic year. AMIN YAKUBU- PRESIDENT, GOVERNOR SAMUEL-VICE PRESIDENT, OHENE BRIGHT-GEN SEC. EMMANUEL AMOAH-FIN SEC. and NANA KWESI- ORG SEC.

It is indeed the dawn of a new era. An era where we will continue with the good works of the past executives, learn from their mistakes and ensure full participation of all members. So let us begin anew, keeping in mind that together we can achieve the dreams of this union. To our dear members, we offer a special pledge – to convert our good words into deeds and ensure that the sole purpose for which our union was formed will be protected.

LONG LIVE NUGS-RUSSIA
LONG LIVE GHANA.
Credit: Ohene BrightAsante (gen sec. NUGS-Russia)

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