Baskadia

Sen. Stephen Adi Odey hails from Uchu-Yache, Yala Local Government Area of

Cross River State. He had his Primary Education at St. Christopher Primary School,

Uchu Yache and Secondary Education at Yache Community Secondary School

Alifokpa and St. Thomas’s College Ogoja.

He proceeded to the famous University of Calabar where he obtained the following

degrees:

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D) in Law;

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D) in Industrial Sociology;

Masters of Law (LL.M);

Masters of Science (M.Sc.) in Industrial Sociology;

B.L from the Nigerian Law School, Abuja, Nigeria;

Bachelor of Law (LL.B Hons.) Second Class Upper Division;

Bachelor of Education (B.Ed) Hons.

Sen. Odey has worked in different organisations including the Defunct Joint

Maritime Labour Industrial Council as a Senior Maritime Labour Officer, the

National Assembly where he served as the Personal Assistant (PA), and later

Special Assistant (SA) to the former Governor of Cross River State, Senator

Professor Ben Ayade who was then Senator representing Cross River North

Senatorial District in the 7

th Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, where he

served meritoriously from 2011 to 2015. He has been an academic Facilitator with

the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) since 2005 and also a Senior

Lecturer at the Department of Sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of

Calabar. Sen. Odey is also a legal practitioner and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of

Nigeria. He is the Principal Partner of Dr. Stephen A. Odey & Associates, a Law

firm he established since 2012.

Sen. Stephen Adi Odey has taught, supervised and contributed immensely to the graduation of

students in the University system. His main area of specialisation are: Education,

Industrial Sociology and Law. He remains a regular participant in many local and

international conferences, symposia, workshops and seminars, where he regularly

presents papers.

In October 2015, Sen. Odey was appointed Executive Chairman of Cross River

State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) by His Excellency, Governor Ben

Ayade and later in 2018 he was also appointed the Acting Managing Director, Cross

River State Water Board Limited (CRSWBL) as the Chief Executive Officer.

These are positions he held concurrently and brought his wealth of experience in

academics, legal and administration to bear. In 2019, he was reappointed as the

Executive Chairman of SUBEB due to his superlative performance.

Senator Odey is a Member of Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Member, Nigerian

Environmental Society; Associate Member, Chartered Institute of Mediators and

Conciliators, Fellow of the Centre for African American Research Studies. He is a

distinguished Fellow & Council Member of Global Africa Society for Education

Transformation & Internationalisation (GASETI); he is an Editor for the

International Journal of Industrial Relations as well as African Journal of

Arbitration and Conflict Resolution, both annual Journals of the Centre for African

American Research Studies (CAARS). He is also a Fellow of Chartered Institute of

Corporate Administration and an Honorary Fellow of The Institute of Universal

Harmony in recognition of competence in peace advocacy, leadership strategies and

outstanding performance as a Peace Advocate.

Sen. Odey on December, 5th 2020, contested and won the Senatorial by-election and

emerged as the Senator representing Cross River North Senatorial District in the 9th

Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Being a Federal Lawmaker with towering

academic achievements and diverse area of specialty, he was appointed as Member

into nine (9) strategic Senate Committees as follows:

1. Senate Committee on Education (Basic and Secondary);

2. Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters;

3. Senate Committee on Marine Transport;

4. Senate Committee on Environment;

5. Senate Committee on Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes;

6. Senate Committee on Interior;

7. Senate Committee on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs);

8. Senate Committee on Aviation, and

9. Senate Committee on Diaspora and NGO.

While in the Senate, Senator Odey sponsored five (5) Bills and moved two (2)

Motions of national interest such as the trending “Urgent Need for the Restoration and

Revalidation of the Safe Schools Initiative in Nigeria” which is now the driving force for

protection of our school system, the resolution has been adopted by the Federal

Government to safeguard schools from security threats; one of the Bills (i.e. A Bill for

an Act to Establish Institute of Information and Communication Technology, Ogoja

2021 (SB.621), was passed on 7

th July, 2021 for Presidential assent.

Furthermore, he has published widely, with over 66 articles in learned journals

across the globe, including America, Sweden, Germany and Asia; He has attended

over seven (7) International Conferences/symposiums of great repute and presented

papers in 2 of the conferences. He is the author of three scholarly textbooks, namely:

Sociology of Law: A Practical Approach; Introduction to Industrial Sociology: General

Perspectives; and Oil and Gas Pollution Abatement and Control Legislation in Nigeria; he

has also contributed 3 Book Chapters in reputable textbooks. His near-perfect

exemplary leadership and academic prowess has won him numerous prestigious

awards including:

1. Distinguished Award of Excellence, for sterling contributions in promoting

overall survival of Educational Enterprise, Political Landscape & as Worthy

Alumni of the Faculty of Education, University of Calabar.

2. Excellence Award, by Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), in

recognition of his outstanding contributions to Basic Education in Cross River

State.

3. Best SUBEB Chairman South-South Geo-political Zone, presented by the

President’s School Debate Nigeria (PSDN) in collaboration with Universal Basic

Education Commission (UBEC).

4. Award of Recognition, by Nigeria Library Association Cross River State

Chapter, for outstanding performance in repositioning the education sector in

Cross River State.

5. Award of Backbone of Functional Basic Education in Cross River State,

presented by Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT), Cross River State Wing.

6. Professional Excellence Award, by Centre for Excellence in Professional

Development (CEPD).

7. Literacy Champion Award, presented by Universal Learning Solutions (ULS);

8. 2017 Integrity Stewardship Award, by Centre for Save & Serve Humanity

Organisation, for being ethically responsible and serving as an advocate of good

governance.

9. ALGON’s Grassroots Community Philanthropist Award, presented by the

Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON).

10. Award of Excellence in Public Service, presented by Association of Nigerian

University Professional Administrators, University of Calabar Branch (ANUPA-

UCB).

11. Award of Recognition, by Uwemedimo Nwoko Chambers of Justice, Faculty

of Law, Arthur Jarvis University.

12. Distinguished Service Award, presented by The Rotary Club of Calabar-

UNICAL.

13. Award of Service, presented by People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Cross River

State Chapter Chairmen forum.

14. Pan-African Prize for Excellence Award, by the African Student’s Union

Parliament (ASUP).

15. Award of Excellence, by Young Lawyers Forum (YLF), Calabar branch, in

recognition of his positive impact in the basic education sector.

16. Award for Distinguished Professional Contributions to Public Service/

Fellowship, by Institute of Corporate Administration.

17. Award of Honour, by World Council for Curriculum and Instruction Nigeria

Chapter, Calabar Branch.

18. Award of Excellence, by the Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Calabar

(UNICAL).

19. Award of Excellence, in Public Service by the Faculty of Education, University

of Calabar (UNICAL).

20. Award of Recognition, by the National Association of Cross River State

students (NACRISS), ABU Zaria Chapter.

21. Award of Honour, by Social Sciences Students Association (SOSSA),

University of Calabar Chapter.

He was appointed into the State Executive Council, as Commissioner for

Education, Cross River State, by the Governor of Cross River State, His Excellency,

Senator (Prince) Bassey Edet Otu on the 16th of August, 2023.

As an outstanding scholar with seven degrees to his name, he loves reading, writing,

researching, traveling, making friends and jogging as his hobbies.

He is happily married with children.

Published by ETTAH EMMANUEL O.

08161558880