Gombe Receives Arewa Students’ Highest Honour

National Chairman of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Professor Sadiq Umar Abubakar Gombe, has called on Nigerian youths to embrace integrity, character and selfless service as the foundation for responsible leadership and national development.

The SDP chairman made the call in Abuja while receiving a delegation of the Arewa Students Forum, which conferred on him its highest honour, Grand Commander of the Arewa Students Forum (GCASF), alongside his induction as a patron of the organization and presentation of a Certificate of Appreciation.

Gombe described the recognition as an honour for the entire National Executive Committee and leadership of the SDP, saying the award reflected the collective efforts of party officials committed to providing purposeful leadership.

He commended the Arewa Students Forum for promoting peace, unity and leadership development among students, noting that the quality of presentations by members of the delegation demonstrated that Nigeria’s future is promising.

The SDP chairman urged young Nigerians to build lives anchored on character, stressing that education without integrity was of little value.

According to him, character remains the greatest asset anyone can possess because it defines legacy and earns lasting respect.

Recalling his days as a student union leader at Ahmadu Bello University, Gombe said student activism shaped his leadership philosophy through campaigns that improved students’ welfare and promoted constructive national dialogue.

He encouraged students to rise above ethnic, religious, regional and political divisions in choosing leaders, urging them to support only individuals with proven competence, integrity and commitment to public service.

Gombe also charged members of the forum to mobilize eligible youths to participate actively in elections, noting that organized youth participation could significantly influence Nigeria’s democratic process and determine the country’s future.

The SDP national chairman praised the forum for maintaining its non-partisan status while encouraging civic responsibility, emphasizing that Nigeria’s progress depends largely on the quality of leadership produced through credible electoral choices.

Earlier, National President of the Arewa Students Forum, Comrade Abubakar Abdullahi, said the organization, with a membership of over 2.1 million students across the 19 Northern states, the Federal Capital Territory and the diaspora, promotes peace, leadership development, career guidance and humanitarian services.

Abdullahi said the forum regularly organizes seminars, leadership engagements and mentorship programmes to discourage drug abuse, examination malpractice, cultism, violent extremism and other social vices among students while also providing career counseling and humanitarian support to vulnerable communities.

He explained that Gombe was selected after a careful assessment of his longstanding contributions to education, youth development and humanitarian service, adding that the honour was based strictly on merit rather than political office.

Also speaking, SDP National Vice Chairman (South East), Senator Ugochukwu Uba, described Professor Gombe as a humble servant leader whose accessibility, integrity and commitment to service distinguished him from many political leaders.

Uba commended the Arewa Students Forum for recognizing what he described as exemplary leadership, saying the award affirmed the quality of leadership within the SDP and reflected the organization’s credibility in identifying deserving Nigerians.

The event featured the presentation of a Certificate of Appreciation, Gombe’s induction into the Hall of Fame as a Patron of the Arewa Students Forum and the conferment of the prestigious title of Grand Commander of the Arewa Students Forum (GCASF) before party leaders, students and invited guests.

Georgina Humphrey, Edited By Grace Namiji