CITATION

OF

BORNO STATE BRANCH OF

THE ASSOCIATION OF RADIOGRAPHERS OF NIGERIA (ARN)

Winner of the most outstanding ARN Branch Award for 2018 – 2019

Read at the closing dinner of the 60^th anniversary/50^th annual conference & scientific workshop of the ARN, on 23^rd November 2018, in Abuja, Nigeria

Preamble

While the mother association is 60 years old as at November 2018, the Borno State Branch is merely a year old.  If an infant Branch could go on to defeat much older, well established and buoyant co-Branches within a short time of existence, then Shakespeare was right to have said that, “Some are born great..” Borno Branch of the ARN was born great with clear focus.

 

Commencement

Borno Branch took off ab initio as Borno-Yobe Branch because of geographical contiguity and the need to mentor Yobe Branch which had fewer Radiographers. Dr Chigozie Ivor Nwobi it is who urged and inspired the Radiographers in Borno-Yobe to come together and start an ARN Branch. Dr Nwobi, without doubt, is the leading Radiography statesman in Borno-Yobe territory. He is the current head of Radiography Department and Sub-Dean of Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Maiduguri, Nigeria. Dr Nwobi has expertise in managing people to achieve desired goals. By November 2016 in his office, a leadership was set up to pilot the affairs of the newly-born Borno-Yobe Branch of the ARN.

 

Pioneer leadership

Mr Geoffrey Luntsi (B.Rad UNIMAID; M.Sc Medical Imaging, Nigeria; Ph.D student, NAU; lecturer in Radiography, UNIMAID) was selected as pioneer/caretaker chairman of the Borno-Yobe Branch.  Mr Luntsi who is a highly disciplined, calm and reliable radiographer, hit the ground running together with his team. Within their one and half year in office, Mr Luntsi and team recorded the following modest achievements:

 

1.     Over 55 Radiographers were discovered and captured in their membership register.

 

2.     In November 2017, they invited the national leadership of the ARN for their Branch inauguration; a no small feat, in view of  older  Branches still unable to achieve that.

 

3.     A bank account was opened pronto. This is also no mean feat as it involves some rigorous procedures.

 

4.     A committee on peace and unity was inaugurated to interact with members and sort real and imagined misgivings. The successes of this committee set the tone for the rapid progress recorded within a short time.

 

5.     They also went ahead immediately to draft their own byelaws, which is in tandem with the mission and vision of the national, professional body (ARN).

 

6.     There were courtesy calls on heads of tertiary health institutions and other relevant political office holders to build a bridge.

 

7.     Borno-Yobe Branch celebrated the 2017 edition of World Radiography Day (WRD) with a lot of fanfare. That made them one of the Branches to be born marking WRD.

 

 

New leadership

On 14^th April 2018, Mr Luntsi-led executive committee elected a new leadership and inaugurated them a month later. The new leadership comprises:

 

I.                 Alhaji Modu Ali, chairman (Ph.D student)

 

II.              Abdulkadir Hammawa Ahmed, Vice Chairman I

 

III.           Muhammad B. Kurama, Vice Chairman II (M.Sc)

 

IV.                        Mathew Garba Abubakar, State Secretary (Ph.D student)

 

V.             Abdulrazaq Mamman, Assistant State Secretary I

 

VI.                        Aishatu Baba Gana Aji Kolo, Assistant State Secretary II

 

VII.                     Muhammad Yusuf Muhammad, Financial secretary (Ph.D student)

 

VIII.                  Ya Karu Ali, Treasurer

 

IX.                        Bello Umar, Public Relations Officer I

 

X.             Goni Musa, Public Relation Officer II (M.Sc student)

 

The new leadership of Alhaji Modu Ali maintained the go-getting streak of his predecessor. From May to November 2018, the following modest achievements were recorded:

 

1.     A know-your-member scheme ensured that from 55, membership shot up to over 90 Radiographers.

 

2.     There were re-familiarization courtesy visits on counterpart sister professional associations/unions in Borno State: Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU), Nigerian Union of Allied Health Professionals (NUAHP), Medical and Health workers union (MHWUN), Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists of Nigeria (AMLSN), Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) and National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives (NANNM). Those courtesy calls brought much goodwill to ARN, Borno Branch as they had free halls, furniture, vehicles and other logistics support from MHWUN during 2018 WRD celebration. The NANNM and JOHESU also   promised to give as much if they were ever approached for assistance in future.

 

To facilitate vacancy and improvement in welfare of radiographers, the Chairman, Borno State Civil Service Commission was also paid a courtesy call. This is resulting in tremendous goodwill for the profession.

 

3.     They successful weaned Yobe Branch and ensured that a focused leadership was in place as at November 2018.

 

Expression of interest in competing for ‘Most outstanding ARN Branch for 2018/2019

 

Although the competition was open to all ARN Branches in Nigeria, only three Branches were courageous enough to dare. As expected, Gombe Branch from North-East Nigeria who won the pioneer edition in November 2017, and are reigning champion, stepped forward to dare other Branches. Surprisingly, Cross River Branch from South-South Nigeria also threw their hat into the ring. The shocker was Borno Branch, a mere infant, which also entered the ring for the gladiatorial contest.  At the end of a fierce and glamorous display of surprising sights and sounds, the reigning champion was dethroned by Cross River Branch. That was not all, Borno Branch gave both competitors a wide berth, to clinch the ultimate prize.

 

Highlights of surprises from Borno Branch included visitation to secondary schools; games competition; free obstetric scans and x-rays services; TV, radio and social media chats. In addition, high profile political leaders in Borno State were invited to attend the WRD celebration. Those who came included  Commissioner for Health representing the Executive Governor of Borno State;  Chairman, House Committee on Health of the State Assembly  representing Speaker of State House of Assembly; Special Adviser on Health to Governor of Borno State;  Dean of Faculty of Health Sciences of UNIMAID, and other important dignitaries.

 

Profile Alhaji Modu Ali, Chairman, Borno Branch

Alhaji Modu Ali, a Kanuri, was born in Yerwa-Maiduguri, Marte LGA of Borno State on 21^st September, 1983. He had primary to tertiary education in Maiduguri from 1988 to 2010, when he was eventually awarded B.Rad by UNIMAID. He went further to obtain a postgraduate diploma in Education (PGDE) from Sir Kashim Ibrahim College of Education, Maiduguri  in 2015. To break the circle of being a homeboy, he went as far as Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Nnewi Campus, South-East Nigeria, for an M.Sc in Medical Imaging. He is one of the very few Radiographers to conclude their M.Sc in ≤ 2 years. He became a Ph.D student the following year.

 

His working career still kept him bound to Maiduguri just like his pre-postgraduate education. Statutory internship (2010 – 2011) and NYSC (2011 – 2012) were at University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH) and Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital (FNPH) Maiduguri, respectively. After his NYSC he was employed at same hospital since 2012 till date. He is much skilled on  computed tomography and minor fault-finding in radiological equipment. He is also computer literate. He had been unit head in his department since 2011.

 

This tall, calm and brilliant Kanuri man whose talents is easy to be underestimated, was an external clinical examiner for RRBN to UNIMAID in 2014. He is not new to leadership as he was class monitor in primary school for several years. In his undergraduate days, he was Financial Secretary of University of Maiduguri Radiography Students Association (UMARADS) from 2006 to 2010. He registered with the ARN immediately after graduation from university in 2010, and has not looked back ever since. He had been chairperson of the ARN, FNPHM chapter from 2011 till date. He was elevated to the level of Vice Chairman, Borno Branch in 2017, and there was no hesitation in electing him chairperson overwhelmingly, in April 2018.

 

His leadership acumen has drawn much awards to him: Best performing staff of Radiology Department by the Management of Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital Maiduguri in 2012; best supporting clinical radiographer award by  UMARADS in 2015; Award of appreciation  by UMARADS in 2017, amongst others.

 

This young man is married with three children. He is a fervent muslim, hardworking, self-motivated, team player, good communicator, a reliable researcher with over 15 research outputs, and a gentleman. His hobbies are reading, teaching, researching, swimming and hunting. In a contest with twenty-two (22) possible winners and two (2) stiff competitors, he led his Branch (Borno) to clinch the ultimate award for 2018/2019.

 

Ladies and gentlemen, we present to you, the Association of Radiographers of Nigeria (ARN), Branch of the Year, led by Alhaji Modu Ali,  for Chairman of Borno Branch for leading his Branch to clinch Most Outstanding ARN Branch,  2018/2019.

 

Congratulations.

 

     

Chairman

For: ARN WRD Awards Committee