By Prof Hassan Saliu
Female members of the NPSA are very few. This stark reality confronted us recently when we were planning to organize a methodology workshop for our female members. In one or two of our zones, it was an uphill task getting female members to be nominated as we were told they were not there. This is a reality that we are trying to change. Even where we do have them in the required quantity, not many of them are high up to rival the number of our male members who have made it to the pinnacle of our discipline. Therefore, when we have a few of our female members who have been shaking the table, we often celebrate them.
Prof Tenuche, one of the few Amazons
Julie Sanda is another of the Amazons!
In my earlier tributes to Professor Marietu Tenuche and Madam Julie Sanda, I did raise the issue of female under-representation in our Association. This was the motivating factor for organizing two purposeful workshops for our female members in June and December, 2024. We will surely not relent in our efforts to push up members of the other gender in the NPSA.
Today’s tribute is to one of the high rising female members of our Association. A few weeks ago, Prof. Linder Kwon-Ndung, celebrated another birthday with silent prayers to God to grant her more life and peace of mind to cope with future challenges of a meaningful life.
I first met her at Keffi during a conference held there in 2015. She was presented as part of Keffi’s slate for the presidency of the Nigerian Political Science Association (NPSA). Prof. Kwon-Ndung was slated for the position of Treasurer in the presidency of Prof. Shuaibu Ibrahim. For three years, she performed the functions of the office with dedication and commitment.
As part of the EXCO as Vice-President then, I did not hear any loud complaints from the president while she held the portfolio. I will later return to her role in the NPSA in this tribute.
Prof. Kwon-Ndung was once involved in business in the thriving fashion sub-sector but later decided to abandon her much-valued entrepreneurial engagement due to the vagaries of the business environment in Nigeria. She then opted for educational pursuit and earned her first degree from the University of Jos for a three-year degree programme in Political Science that got extended to five years. She eventually graduated in 2002 due to ASUU’s prolonged strikes. Prof. Kwon-Ndung proceeded to the University of Abuja for her Master’s and doctoral degrees from 2005-2008 and 2010-2015, respectively. Her doctoral thesis focused on the political economy aspect of Political Science.
Prof. Kwon-Ndung has an insatiable quest for knowledge that led her to acquire a certificate in project management from a Kenya-based Institute in 2024. Earlier in 2020, she obtained another certificate in managing gender-based violence from the United Nations Fund for Population Activities, UNFPA.
Her lecturing career began at the Nasarawa State University as an Assistant Lecturer in 2008. She rose through the ranks to become a Senior Lecturer before leaving the University for the Federal University, Lafia, in 2016, where she became a Professor in 2022. She has considerable experience in administrative matters, as her Curriculum Vitae shows her deep level of experience serving in statutory and administrative committees at both Keffi and Lafia.
Dr. Inanna Hamati-Ataya, one of the most emergent powerful voices in international political theory today
Prof Elinor Ostrom, still the only woman political scientist to have won the Nobel Peace Prize
Prof. Kwon-Ndung is an easy-going person who only focuses on her goals. In my estimation, her gentleness belies her physical size. She is soft-spoken and a dependable ally who carries out responsibilities assigned to her with dedication. From what I have heard about her, she treats students with respect and dignity, though she can get easily upset with the antics of students. Her students consider her a mother figure based on her attitude towards them.
Prof. Kwon-Dung is a committed member of our Association, which she has served on numerous occasions. Between 2015 and 2018, she served as the Treasurer of the NPSA. During that period, she demonstrated diligence and commitment in carrying out her assigned responsibilities.
A somewhat trained accountant, she kept proper records of the financial transactions of the Association, earning admiration from all. The entitlements approved by the president were duly paid without any issues.
I recall our conference in 2018 at Abakaliki, where the then governor of the State, David Omahi, donated ₦10 million to our Association to offset the transport costs of the conference attendees. She efficiently paid the money to the affected members without any issues arising from it; the transfers were done seamlessly based on the directives given to her on the matter.
Since leaving office, the birthday lady has remained committed to our Association. In 2022, she delivered the lead paper at the zonal conference of the North Central Zone held in Lokoja. She is also a member of the History Project Committee of the NPSA, which I constituted in 2023. According to the Chairman of the Committee, Prof. Godwin Onu, she submitted her chapter in good time.
I have also assigned a chapter to her in a book I am coordinating. I am pleased to report that her chapter is already in my possession, while other authors are still working on theirs. Prof. Kwon-Ndung is not only known within the four walls of the university system, where she has served as External Examiner to some departments of Political Science and Public Administration. She observed her last sabbatical leave at the National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies, Kuru, Jos, where she headed the Gender Studies Centre until January 2025. She is equally a member of some professional associations, including the Nigerian Society for Women Academics, Professional Women in Nigeria and the Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa (CODESRIA).
Our today’s birthday lady has expertise in gender studies and has won some research grants from TETFUND, CERDPA, USAID/COMPASS, among other, for her research activities. Prof. Kwon-Ndung is reasonably published in reputable journals and has made a noticeable impact in community development. She will be delivering the 26th Inaugural Lecture of the Federal University, Lafia on the 13th of March, 2025 on gender matters.
She is happily married with children. Happy birthday to you, Prof. Kwon-Ndung!
The author is the incumbent president of the NPSA
