Renaming of College by Nigeria President Hold on by Court

A Nigerian court has blocked the renaming of Nigeria's largest city's flagship university, a move that had caused days of student protests.

Nigeria's state-run television said Tuesday that Federal High Court Judge Stephen Adah has granted a temporary order blocking the federal government from renaming the University of Lagos, popularly known as UNILAG.

President Goodluck Jonathan announced May 29 that the university would henceforth be called Moshood Abiola University.

The move was meant to honor a political prisoner who died in jail over a decade ago.

However, the announcement sparked protests that forced the university to shut down for two weeks. Students say the original name is a valued brand.

Various university groups then contested the name change in court after UNILAG's administration said it hadn't been told of a plan to change the name.

University of Benin now Partner with European and American University

Benin — The University of Benin has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with universities in Europe and America. The universities include the University of Reading, UK, the University of Lancaster, UK, the University of Bora, Sweden, the University of Rostock, Germany and the Mercer University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.

Vice Chancellor of the University of Benin, Professor Osayuki Oshodin said the understanding with other foreign institutions is part of the policy of the administration aimed at expanding its pool of international institutional partners.

A statement signed by the vice chancellor added that the collaboration with the University of Reading, begins with a jointly organized two day international research symposium with the theme, "Energy, climate change and environment."

University of Ilorin Expelled and Rusticated some Student

The University of Ilorin has expelled 13 students for various acts of misconduct. The Registrar of the institution, Mrs Olufolake Oyeyemi, gave the hint in Ilorin yesterday.

She said the affected students were found guilty of various acts of misconduct such as examination malpractices or illegal associations.

She gave the names of the students as Lawal Ibrahim of Dept of Geography; Ayanda Isaac, Dept of Computer Science; Ajayi Monsuru, Dept of Arts and Social Sciences; Ijagbemi Samuel of the Dept of Mass Communication, and Issah Namadu of Dept of Computer Science.

Others were Odeku Oluwaseun, Dept of Physics; Olayiwola Yusuf, Dept of Mathematics; Ademola Iyabo, Amusan Kemi, Issa Ahmed, all of the Faculty of Education.

The rest were Ibrahim Ayobami, Statistics Dept; Akanbi Adeyinka, Home Economics and Ikotun Felix, Dept of Mechanical Eng. Oyeyemi said the affected students were advised to stay away from the campus.

While

The Tai Solarin University of Education (TASUED), Ijebu-Ode, Ogun, on Monday said that it expelled six students and rusticated 20 others for examination malpractice.

Prof. Segun Awonusi, the institution's Vice-Chancellor, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ijebu-Ode, Ogun.

He said the disciplinary action was taken against the students after they were found guilty of the offence by the Senate of the university.

Awonusi said that the institution had zero tolerance for examination malpractice and cultism, adding that it would not compromise its stand on it.

He said, "We have zero tolerance for examination malpractice and cultism. It is no go area.
Once you are caught, you are on your own because that is the way we can instil discipline in our students, who we believe, will take over from us tomorrow.

"We are not saying the vices can be wiped off over night but gradually we will get there."
On the issue of cultism, the vice-chancellor said the institution had started building hostels to curtail the menace.

He said this was because research had shown that cultism thrives more in non-residential institutions.
The vice-chancellor said, "Research has confirmed that cultism thrives more in non residential institution than in the residential ones.

"And that is why we started building hostels for students within the campus in order to return to the residential format, which we believe will in one way or the other minimise the act of cultism."

Awonusi said that the institution had been saved the spectacle of students' unrest in the past few years, said that the university would not allow anything that would jeopardise the peace in the institution.

The vice-chancellor, however, urged the students to desist from all acts of social vices that were capable of jeopardizing their future.

Part-Time University Programmes are Suspended

The National Universities Commission (NUC) announced recently that it has asked all degree-awarding institutions to suspend the running of part-time programmes. According to the NUC Executive Secretary Professor Julius Okojie, the decision was informed by the need to streamline such programmes.
He noted that over the years, universities had churned out bad products. He solicited the co-operation of universities "to evolve a more focused and credible system". According to him, no university should have more than 20 per cent of its student population on part-time, with excess capacity to teach, adding that "all part-time programmes must be located on-campus. We do not want satellite campuses anymore". One report said over 10 million students would be affected by the new policy, which most universities have already kicked against.

Notwithstanding reasons that Professor Okojie has adduced for the suspension, the announcement once more underlined the policy summersaults that have characterised the education sector in recent years.

Universities introduced such part-time programmes principally to augment their finances due to persistent shortfalls in government funding. At the same time, they provided members of the community who can afford the cost with alternative platform to obtain higher education with appropriate and verifiable certification. Over the years, budgetary allocations to Nigerian universities as well as the educational sector have been declining. In the 2012 budget, for instance, education has less than 10 percent of the total budget, a far cry from the minimum prescribed by the United Nations.

The challenges that the NUC ascribed to the running of part-time programmes in Nigerian universities cannot be isolated from the dilemma facing the educational sector in general. But its effects are far more problematic, at least in the immediate future, namely, the future of those who hope for higher education via this time-tested route. Recent events at the University of Abuja which culminated in the suspension of some courses by the Federal Ministry of Education are a clear case to be worried about. These days, government policies seem in most cases to be thought out without considering the wider effects they might have.

If these programmes had been run for years, and are now found to be deficient, what steps did the NUC take to remediate the situation, instead of their wholesale suspension? What is the fate of those already enrolled into the programmes? It is clear that the idea of part-time programmes was to allow for Nigerians who are employed and may not have the opportunity - or the time - to attend regular classes to improve themselves. Today, students involved in these schemes are young secondary school leavers who feel left out by the bottleneck that the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) examinations has become.

The negative effects of the suspension should persuade the NUC to have a rethink and moderate the policy in order to take account of all those involved. In fact, some universities have made it clear that they intend to continue the programmes until the current students enrol in them graduate. A better option would be for the NUC to begin proper monitoring of the programmes and strict implementation of rules on the number of students to be enrolled, and insist that universities improve on their facilities. Also, the NUC should place a moratorium on further enrolments, while ensuring that students already involved in the system are allowed to complete their courses. Whatever reviews the NUC proposes to make, that should not take too long, and should not include any suggestion of jettisoning the part-time programmes entirely.

Government should also heed the clamour by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and other unions in the education sector for proper funding and improved facilities. It is such funding that would guarantee the establishment of more state-owned universities with the required quality of staff and facilities, as against the growth of substandard private universities in the country. There are millions of Nigerians who yearn for quality and affordable education which they have over the years been denied because of government's dwindling investment in the sector. Until this serious problem is addressed, any attempt at quick-fixes and policy reversals will not augur well for the system.

Nigeria:IMT, Enugu - Iloeje is revoking Sanitation

Interview

Former Deputy Vice Chancellor, Federal University of Technology, Owerri (FUTO), Professor Mike U. Iloeje, is currently the Rector, Institute of Management and Technology (IMT), Enugu. He speaks to MIKE UBANI on his vision for IMT, and the need for adequate funding of technology-based institutions in the country.

May we know your vision for the Institute of Management and Technology (IMT), Enugu?
I came in here as Rector of IMT in October 2011; that's barely eight months ago, on the appointment of his Excellency, the Governor of Enugu State, Sullivan Chime. My specific mission is to restore IMT to the standard where it was before in the tertiary education sector of this country. IMT, as you and I know, is one of the top three polytechnics in this country. The other two are the Yaba College of Technology (Yabatech), and Kaduna Polytechnic (KadPoly). If you want a slogan for my job here, it is 'restoration agenda'. We had derailed in the past, and so my job here is to restore every aspect of our academia, including research, public service, training, development and community service.

What are the constraints you face today in IMT?
The very first thing that we need here is influx of funds. Why do I say that? You can quote me. What we get from internally generated revenue from student fees and charges is N35 million on the average every month - based on our downsized number of students. Now, what we get from government today is N21million which we are grateful for. If you add the N20million that government gives us with the N35 million that we generate, that means N55million. But my monthly wage bill here is N158 million. We are begging the government and every concerned stakeholder to come to our aid so that we can continue to provide our services at the desired level. We would be more than grateful if the state government can come to our assistance by increasing our monthly subvention. They have done so for other tertiary institutions in the state, for example, our sister institutions, the Enugu state University of Science and Technology (ESUT) and also the Enugu State College of Education (Technical). I want to use this medium to thank the government for the consistency at which they release our monthly subventions. We also beg them to see if they can increase the funds so that we can continue to pay our workers. Currently, I owe two months' salary to our workers, and you know a worker deserves his wages. Just last week, I gave a directive to the bursar to see if we can pay April salaries, which we have done. We thank the government for that, but we still owe May-June. We have carefully managed this place so that there is industrial harmony and stability.

Another problem is racketeering. The academic content of our programme has been abused by lecturers and many of our staff members through unbridled extortion of money from students; unauthorized and illegal sale of handouts and textbooks that are substandard, but which students are made to buy. This is what you euphemistically call 'buy or die'. If you don't buy that textbook you will 'die' academically. People proliferate textbooks that are neither edited nor reviewed, and compulsorily require the students to buy them as a necessary pre-condition for passing their courses. I am in the process of making sure that that stops in IMT. It is wrong, it is unprofessional, unethical and morally wrong and so we must stop it. And any person that has been reported to me as being guilty of that offence or even alleged to have committed the offence, is usually given an opportunity to defend himself. If he is found guilty, he has a chance of an appeal, and if the evidence against such a person is overwhelmingly correct, disciplinary measures are taken against such a person.

Has anybody been found guilty of these offences, and what disciplinary measures did you take against such a person?
Yes. Some lecturers have been found guilty, and consequently some of them have had their appointments terminated, and some have been suspended. Some lecturers have also been made to refund monies extorted from students.

What are the major components of this restoration agenda?
We want to restore the confidence of people who send their daughters or wives to IMT, that their academic progress will not be compromised because of sexual harassment. You must have heard of the slogan: 'if you don't sleep with a male lecturer, you will 'die' academically' or 'sex for grade'. In the last eight months that I have been here, I have terminated the appointments of two members of staff on sexual harassment charges. I am reassuring every female student here that her human rights will be properly defended by this institution. Let me sound a warning through LEADERSHIP Newspaper, that IMT is no longer an institution where female students are sexually harassed. If there is any reported case, the accused person would be given ample opportunity to a fair hearing following our regulations and the rules of natural justice, and if the person can vindicate himself, fine, otherwise he should be ready to face the prescribed disciplinary measures.

Has the IMT accreditation which was withdrawn by the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) been restored? and how?
Yes. By this time last year, the accreditation to offer the National Diploma (ND) and Higher National Diploma (HND) was withdrawn by the NBTE, which is the regulatory and supervisory body. What that meant was that the HND graduates - about 15,812 of them - were denied the opportunity to be mobilized to do their National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme along with their colleagues from other parts of the country. The Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) was mandated to stop admitting students into IMT. We were given the option of what is known as 'zero steady population'. We went to Kaduna and pleaded our case, and we have restored the accreditation that was withdrawn. We were given operating guidelines which include the capacity of students that we can carry.

What are you doing to rehabilitate the dilapidated buildings in IMT?
In fact, the rehabilitation of some of those dilapidated physical facilities that were established in 1972 by Prof. Chijioke, the pioneer Rector of IMT, is part of my restoration agenda. Many of our machines in the IMT Industrial Centre are those old, World War II leftovers that are calibrated in inches. The world has gone metric but many of our equipment are not. Recently, in that same programme of restoration agenda, we have taken delivery of so many equipment in our Industrial Centre. They are brand new machines - cutting edge technological machines. This will help to expand our resource base so that we can also expand our student enrolment. There are also other things that we are doing on ground here, in terms of academic programmes. IMT is a brand name. IMT is known worldwide, not just in this country. Our department of Fine and Applied Arts is one of the best in Africa, but the institution has not marketed that department as aggressively as they should do. Since assuming office, I have enabled that department to create a website where the sculptors, the artists and other people in visual and creative arts can market their products in the international marketplace, upload their works of art at a price that people can access them and know what they can do; and all that will be to the glory of IMT. And also as part of our restoration agenda, I have attracted a conference attendance grant from the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND), which is available for all Nigerian universities and polytechnics. There is currently the one on ground where any academic member of staff of IMT, who wants to attend any overseas conference anywhere in the world, can access that grant up to half a million naira. But it must be an overseas conference for a learned society or professional society, so that if I can get 15 people to go in the next three months, you can see the ripple effect it would have in this institution: it would synergize and jumpstart the academic revolution here. On the physical structures, I am putting together a restoration agenda committee - every department will have a restoration agenda committee where the departments will tell us the needs of that department or school, and how to bring their facilities to the level required in the 21st Century, and that will be compiled. And I will tell the owners of the institution, which is the government and people of Enugu State, how much it is going to cost to bring the institution to the level I want to take it to.

Against the backdrop of these constraints, are you in a position to attract good lecturers here?
If the truth must be told, some of our academic staff have no business being here. For example, when I came here eight months ago, the head of department of mass communication absolutely had no qualification in mass communication. I have chosen mass communication because I know that is your area. The person charged with the responsibility of providing academic and professional leadership in that department had absolutely no qualification, no certificate or training in mass communication. You cannot be ordained a priest in the Anglican Communion and you want to be a Bishop in the Catholic Church. But in fairness to him, he has a HND, BSC and Masters Degree in fine and applied arts. I removed him from mass communications, and made him the head of department of fine and applied arts. If you put a carpenter in charge of masons, the job will not be done. So, what I am trying to do is to use what I have in the best possible way to get to where I want to go. When I get more funds, then I can aggressively go out to employ better qualified people. We have a proposal to establish a radio station in IMT. When we get this station on air, students in the mass communication department will know how to operate a radio station. An institution as old as IMT should have a radio station.

What is the student population of IMT?
When I assumed duty, IMT had about 35,812 students. That's far above what the NBTE approved. But in restoring the accreditation that was withdrawn, the NBTE gave us our approved student carrying capacity - which is 7,080 students.

Does that figure represent the number of students you are allowed to admit each year?
No, not at all; that represents the overall number of students that we are supposed to have here.

So what did you do with the surplus?
They just don't disappear into the thin air. We are gradually reducing our student population. For example, in the 2011/2012 academic session, there were over 20,000 students who indicated their interests to enroll in IMT, but we are allowed to admit only 1,200. It means that 94 percent of those interested in getting admission into IMT cannot be accommodated or offered admission. This creates a bigger social problem such that our children in this part of the country don't have access to tertiary education.

Are there things you are doing to generate revenue internally?
Yes, of course, the UniAir programme is being re-invigorated. We have admitted some students into that programme. We also admit students into the preliminary studies to remediate some of their deficiencies. I don't see any reason why IMT cannot run a skill-based training programme for vulcanizers so that they can be better equipped and qualified artisans and technicians. In places like Ghana, they have such programmes in bakery and printing technology. These are not certificate-based programmes, but skill-based programmes

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7,057 candidates to write UI 2012/2013 post-UTME

7,057 candidates to write UI 2012/2013 post-UTME

No fewer than 7,057 prospective admission seekers are to write the 2012/2013 Post University Tertiary Matriculation Examination (Post-UTME) of the University of Ibadan (UI), next Monday.      According to UI Director of Public Communication, Mr. Olatunji Oladejo, the university authorities had invited 7,057 candidates to write the 2012/2013 Post UTME under the institution’s strict examination conditions. 

He said the invitation of 7,057 candidates for the Post-UTME, follows the processing of submitted results by candidates who made the university their first choice or second choice.  “The shortlisted candidates were requested to present themselves for Post-UTME exercise at the University of Ibadan on Monday, July 9, at the lecture theatre of their prospective faculties for the exercise at 8.30am prompt,” said Mr. Oladejo. 

His words: “The candidates are requested to report at the examination venue with the following documents, original and photocopies of JAMB notification of result, original and photocopies of WAEC/NECO/SSCE certificates, original and photocopies of birth certificate/sworn declaration, original and photocopies of the customer copy of the Bank Teller used for payment, two recent passport size photographs showing frontal face view.

“Candidates should note that online statements of results obtained before Nov/Dec 2008 are not acceptable for this exercise. “Names of short listed candidates for the Post-UTME examination will be displayed on the university’s website. Electronic mails (e-mails) and SMS will be sent to all invited candidates.”

The UI spokesman quoted the Chairman of the Undergraduate Admissions Committee, Professor Joseph Anthony Woods as stating that, “it is anticipated that the university will be inviting many candidates using the JAMB criteria of merit, locality and Education Less Developed States (ELDS) to write the examination this year in contrast to last year’s exercise, where approximately, 5,000 candidates wrote the examination. 

UI is increasing access to all candidates by this phased increase in the post UTME participation examination. “The candidates will be examined strictly in the subjects they offered at the JAMB examination. The essence here is to be able to test the candidates and be sure that they are the ones who sat for the JAMB they wrote before under strict UI examination conditions,” he explained

Security Cautions Against Electoral Manipulation in Edo

President Goodluck Jonathan, on Saturday in Benin, assured the people of the state of 100 per cent security of their lives and property during the July 14 governorship election.
Jonathan gave the assurance at the PDP campaign for the July 14 Edo governorship election at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium.
``I have asked the Inspector-General of Police and the service chiefs if they are prepared for the Edo governorship election.
``I want to assure the good people of the state that I am guaranteeing 100 per cent security during the election,’’ he said.
The President, who also disclosed that government would ensure that there would be no electoral manipulation, said that ``nobody will change figures at the polls.’’
``PDP as a bid party will win if they mobilise well for the election.’’
 He said that in line with his transformation agenda ``we will continue to deliver on our electoral promises.
``You will remember that it was in Edo that I launched my policy of one man, one vote. I, therefore, still insist that we must change the way we play politics.
``There should be no thuggery and violence in our electoral live,’’ Jonathan said.
Earlier, Vice President Namadi Sambo and National Chairman of the Edo Campaign Committee, said that Jonathan’s presence was enough morale booster to the people to come out en masse and vote for the party’s candidate, Charles Airhiavbere, on July 14.
Sambo said that if the people were effectively mobilised and exercise their franchise on July 14, ``we will be back here after the election for the swearing-in ceremony.’’
Other speakers who charged the people to ensure that they come out to vote for the PDP included the National chairman of the party, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, former BOT chairman, Chief Tony Anineh and the Minister of works, Mr Mike Onolememen, among others.
Some of the dignitaries at the rally were Former Gov. Osarenmen Osunbor, Sen. Roland Owie, two- time governor of the defunct Bendel and Edo, Dr Samuel Ogbemudia, the state party chairman, Chief Dan Orbih and Chief Gabriel Igbinedion.
The highpoint of the rally was the presentation of the party’s flag to the team of Airhiavbere and his deputy, Chief Johnson Abolagba, by Jonathan and Tukur.
Earlier, Jonathan had about five minutes’ private discussion with the Oba of Benin, Omo N’oba Erediauwa.

President Receives New Oil Industry Draft Bill, Articles | THISDAY LIVE

It took a long while coming and at some point its status and whereabouts became a subject of controversy. But it appears the long wait for the Petroleum Industry Bill may soon be over as Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs Deziani Allison-Madueke yesterday at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, submitted a review of the draft bill to President Goodluck Jonathan.

The report was a product of a committee set up six months ago to review the document which had generated much discourse in the oil and gas industry.

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President Receives New Oil Industry Draft Bill, Articles | THISDAY LIVE

On President Jonathan And 'Public' Assets Declaration

On President Jonathan And 'Public' Assets Declaration

IN modern society, there are acts not forbidden by law, but which are clearly governed by discretion and morality.  Moral relativism, as illustrated by the saying about one man’s meat being another man’s poison, is as old as human society. And usually individual notions of what is right or wrong engage one another in an open field of moral relativism where the law does not specify actions that members of society should regard as right or wrong. This can lead to conflicts that are hard to resolve owing to the divergent interests of “players” in such fields. Usually, such conflicts remain unresolved until society, through the appropriate channel, makes laws clarifying which of such borderline actions should be considered right or wrong, which in the latter case becomes a punishable offence, with a specific sanction for contravention.

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