The Nation Newspaper

Category: Campus Life

  • Ominous silence on ASUP strike

    Ominous silence on ASUP strike

    As a student, I have been taken aback by the silence of the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP) on its ongoing strike; which started last October. It has been over two months since the polytechnics were shut and there has been no adequate media publicity to draw the government’s attention to the closure.

    Unlike the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) strike, which drew national attention, the ASUP strike is seen as inconsequential to national development, but the fate of thousands of students is dangling on the balance.

    I was discussing with a friend, who wanted to know the latest about the ASUP strike and polytechnics’ resumption. I offered that nothing was being done to make students return to school because the focus was on the ASUU strike and university students. This discussion made me posted a write up on social media, with the caption: “ASUP lacks media publicity” and it attracted a lot of comments and reactions from students, who expressed the view that the nation still sees polytechnic students as inferior.

    It must be said, the lack of focus to the ASUP demands and its officials’ silence has brought setback to the resolution of crisis rocking the polytechnics.

    Before it called off its strike, the ASUU was always in the news every day. Its nocturnal and daylight meetings with the government were reported as top headlines in the media, a development that I consider to help ASUU’s demands to be met by the government. It is not because the government gave an ultimatum to the lecturers to resume or former ASUU President Festus Iyayi died while trying to resolve the issue, it is because university lecturers were committed and they have achieved their goals and objectives to justify the strike. The ASUP never has such commitment.

    It was the government that was looking forward to ASUU to call off the strike after signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), but the reverse is the case for ASUP, why?

    ASUP went on strike last June and suspended the action in October to allow many polytechnics complete examinations and semesters. It called another strike to force the government to erase the dichotomy between Higher National Diploma and Bachelor of Science degrees among other demands.

    The National Association of Polytechnic Students (NAPS) executive has also kept mum while the strike progress. Though, some weeks ago, the NAPS called on the supervising Minister of Education Nyesom Wike’s sack for his incompetence and failure to resolve the crises facing the education sector. The union executive needs to tell the government the truth by making their ways into media, but they are letting the students down.

    I believe the only channel through which the government would take ASUP strike serious is by the officials to explore the publicity of the strike on radio, television and newspapers. I believe, if on daily basis, our government can feel the criticism by the polytechnic students and ASUP, the government would be forced to see reasons in ASUP’s demands.

    We are in a world where pen and papers are mightier than the swords. But who will tell the story of the polytechnic students? Why are the people to protect polytechnic students’ interest? Society gives high esteem to journalists, who through their training help translate and interpret complex and technical information into simple language that we can understand. But if we keep mum and we do not express our minds to the media, I am sure journalists would not cook stories for us to be heard, ASUP and unions in polytechnics have to speak up and patronize the media to tell our story.

    The furore generated by the recent 18-page letter of former President Olusegun Obasanjo to President Goodluck Jonathan spread across the country because of the publicity by the media. That is the power of the mass media but ASUP restricted itself to campuses and believed government would come there to negotiate. In Nigeria, if a matter has not blown open, the authority concern may believe it is a child’s play.

    It is high time the ASUP, NAPS executives and polytechnic students stood up and approach the mass media to fight their cause so that government would quickly move to resolve the ongoing ASUP strike.

     

    •Kazeem, is a student of Mass Comm., OFFAPOLY

  • Cleric praises Fed Govt for paying arrears

    THE Ogun State Chairman, Nigeria Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, Alhaji Abdulrasheed Mayaleke, has commended the federal government for paying the five-month arrears of members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).

    He hailed the union for its doggedness in getting the government to be more committed to repositioning the tertiary education sub-sector.

    Mayaleke told journalists in Ijebu-ode that people were happy that the strike was over.

    He was, particularly, happy that the issue that kept thousands of undergraduates at home had been resolved.

    He said ASUU should be commended for not fighting for themselves alone, but also for the future of children who are yet to gain admission into the universities.

    Mayaleke urged the government to honour agreement it reached with labour unions to promote industrial peace and harmony.

    He noted that if both ASUU and the Federal Government had reached a compromise on time, all the losses incurred during the struggle would have been avoided, especially the death of the former ASUU President, Prof Festus Iyayi.

    Having got their demands from the government, the cleric urged the unionists to do their part to regain lost grounds.

    “Now that the needed fund has been disbursed, all eyes are on ASUU to fulfil the dream of making Nigeria’s universities rank among the best in the continent and the world at large,” he said.

    Mayaleke called on the three tiers of government to fund the education sector to build a virile nation.

     

  • Students counselled on career development

    An educationist, Mr Oshoboyede Yemi, has advised his students to maintain a high level of confidence in their careers.

    Yemi, who is the Director of Studies, Eminent Resources Centre, Mafoluku in Oshodi, gave the advice during the graduation of the centre. Thirty-five graduands received certificates in computer science, information technology, accounting, among others.

    Yemi urged the graduands to work hard and be confident in order to succeed.

    “The graduands should see themselves as future leaders and work harder because this institution boasts of seasoned workers who have helped in equipping them with sound training,” he said.

    Since inception in 2005, Yemi said the centre has been training the youth to become computer literate boost their opportunities in the labour market.

    Also, the Principal Partner, Micro Hard Computers, Mr Idowu Olagoroye, urged the graduating students to be industrious to achieve success.

    Olagoroye in his paper titled: What is 3rd generation and 4th generation, said cell phones and other Information Communication and Technology (ICT) facilities are produced to meet the needs of various generations.

    He said some were developed in the late 1990s and 2000s with the aim of improving data capability.

    He said ICT drives the global economy, stressing that i-phone, androids and i-Pads and other mobile accessories have helped to make the society digital.

    A graduand, Slshak Salahdeen, said his study was worthwhile.

    “I want to thank my colleagues, teachers and parents for ensuring that I got the best training,” he said.

     

  • UNN vows to maintain high dental standard

    The second yearly health week of the University of Nigeria Dental Students Association (UNDESA), with the theme: Ethics of dental and medical practice in a developing country: The place of students associations in nation building, has been held at the institution Enugu Campus.

    Addressing the students, the Dean of the Faculty of Dentistry, Dr Linda Oge Okoye, said the university was committed to providing an enabling environment for students to achieve their academic ambitions.

    Dr Okoye said the high standard of its programme which earned it the accreditation of Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN), would not be compromised, adding that management had provided facilities and adequate manpower to enhance quality teaching and research.

    The event was attended by principal officers of the university, including the Deputy Vice Chancellor, Prof Ifeoma Enemo and Provost of the College of Medicine, Prof Basden Onwubere.

    Dr Okoye noted that due to the massive educational and research activities of staff and students of the faculty in the past two years, Enugu and its neighbouring environments, have witnessed a high level of dental health awareness.

    “Since our last health week, we have been accredited and went ahead to graduate two sets of dental surgeons,” she stated.

    She said in an effort to give the students the best dental training, the university had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to run an exchange programme with the University of British Columbia, in Canada, adding that only hardworking students would benefit from the scheme which begins early next year.

    Dr Okoye appealed to the Enugu State Governor, Mr Sullivan Chime, to assist the faculty, noting that the Federal Government alone could not solve their numerous problems.

    She stated that despite the impressive performance of students, the faculty, which was the only one training dental surgeons in the South-east, required more equipment, additional hostel and administrative blocks, staff vehicles and buses to convey students from Enugu to the permanent site of the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital (UNTH) at Ituku in Ozalla, Enugu.

    President of the association, Endurance Lawrence, said this year’s health week would raise awareness on oral healthcare in rural communities.

    He noted that oral care was a critical aspect of health that most people neglect, adding that after their health campaign, more information would be made available to the members of the communities.

    “Apart from lectures, which be delivered by two eminent scholars such as Prof Uche Nwagha and Dr Felix Chukwuneke, we will be presenting to the public Mascella, the official journal of our association and a website for the association,” he said.

     

  • Firm seeks to reduce failure by 30% with tablet

    Mobile Knowledge Solution (MKS), an educational solutions provider, has launched a digital learning tool it boasts can help reduce poor performance by up to 30 per cent.

    The device, called the Personal Education Tablet Secondary School (PETSS), is loaded with content to help candidates prepare for public examinations such as the Senior School Certificate Examination and the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).

    The tablet, which is similar to the Osun State’s Opon Imo that was distributed to senior secondary school pupils by the Rauf Aregbesola-led government last year, contains e-textbooks, video lessons, mock examinations references, past question papers and allows users access the internet.

    Unveiling the device in Ikeja, Lagos, the Chief Operative Officer, MKS, Mr. Ibrahim Yusuf, said using PETSS, which is designed specifically for pupils in the secondary school taking various examinations, can make them perform better.

    “We believe that this will help in the reduction of external examinations failure by 30 per cent and make the era of falling standard of education, which had become worrisome to stakeholders and concerned Nigerians a thing of the past” he said.

    Yusuf said the product also boasts of an interactive platform to enable pupils interact with their teachers.

    He said: “These days, classes, assignments are done online. It is possible to sit down in the comfort of office and bedroom and receive lecture at your convenience.”

    He added that with the availability of digital tools, problems, such as inadequate resources, exponential growth in population, lack of good teachers and learning facilities, and lack of diligence on the part of teachers and students, confronting the education system would no longer pose any threat.

    Yusuf said that the product has been approved by Lagos state government.

    General Manager Marketing MKS, Mr Biyi Fashoyin said some other states have shown interest in the product.

    “So far, a number of states including Zamfara, Jigawa and Kano had shown interest in partnering with us and with a view to solving their educational problem,” he said.

    Also speaking, General Manager, Technology, Mr. Olusola Daranijo, said the laboratory video included in the device, were recorded locally to enable students connect easily.

     

  • Alumni honour Speaker, 22 others

    The University of Nigeria Alunmni Association, Benue State branch, has given the Pillar of Excellence in Leadership award to the Speaker of the Benue State House of Assembly, Mr. Emmanuel Terhile Ayua.

    He was honoured during the association’s end-of-year party and award night in Makurdi, the state capital.

    The chairman of the occasion, Dr Daniel Agogo, an associate professor in the department of Education, Benue State University, Makurdi, said the awards given to personalities demonstrate the fact that they are recognised in their chosen fields. He urged them to continue to do more for the society.

    “Occasions like these offer the association the opportunity to assess the performance and achievements of all products of the university in their avowed role to contribute meaningfully towards the social, economic and political developments in the country in general and the state in particular,” he said.

    In his speech, the branch President of UNAA, Mr Nathaniel Afaor, noted with dismay that most governments are no longer able to provide for the developmental needs of their institutions of higher learning, hence the alumni bodies have to intervene.

    He appealed to the Benue State government to allocate a plot of land for the association’s planned secretariat complex, computer training institute and skills acquisition centre. With the facility, he said, the group can partner with the government to reduce unemployment by training and empowering youths with skills for self-sufficiency and employment.

    Other awardees at the event were Mrs. Maureen Rumun Kajo, Chris Afaor, Kenneth Iyo, Hon. Dorothy Mato, Dr. Tivlumun Nyitse, Emmanuel Jime, Felix Atume, Comrade Simon Anchaver and Dr. M. Y. Ortese.

     

  • Market relocates for campus renovation

    Market relocates for campus renovation

    ALL stalls, kiosks and containers on the front gate of the lmo State University (IMSU) in Owerri have been relocated to the IMSU Junction to pave the way for renovation.

    CAMPUSLIFE gathered that the management of Owerri Capital Development Authority (OCDA), acting on the directive of Governor Rochas Okorocha, provided the traders the place, following the demolition of illegal structures by the agency.

    Okechukwu Olegame, OCDA Task Force chairman, told CAMPUSLIFE that the space was given to the traders free. He said the move was to make students to have access to the market without going far. Olegame spoke on behalf of the General Manager, Hon Iheanyi Abaekulma.

    Ada Madu, a hairdresser, who spoke to our correspondent, said it was not easy for her to relocate her business, saying the affected traders were only allowed to use umbrella and not to build any structure on the new site.

    Adibe Lambet, whose shop was demolished by the OCDA, lamented that it was difficult for him and his family to cope with the loss he suffered, adding that he could not rebuild his business on the new site because they were only allowed to make use of umbrella.

    The market women leader, Mrs Love Nelson, said: “This place is free for any road seller, anywhere you see you pitch your tent or umbrella. We are having bad market now because students had had not returned to campus.”

    Chioma Okafor, 200-Level student, whose textile business was affected after the demolition told CAMPUSLIFE that the agency was initially charging N500 from the traders before Abaekulma waded in and asked them not to pay again. Some of the traders who paid ignorantly have, however, not been refunded.

  • Community distrupts varsity examination in Delta

    Community distrupts varsity examination in Delta

    According to a student of Federal University of Petroleum Resources, Effurun Delta State  the host community of the insitution is protesting over inability of the school management to consider them for employment.

    Below is the details of the situation as sent by the student who pleaded anonymity:

    “I am a student of the Federal University of Petroleum Resources, Effurun, Nigeria. Since yesterday Tuesday, the 7th of January, 2014, there has been a riot by the community where my university is located, together with other universities, concerning an employment issue.

    “Our 2nd semester exams started on Monday 6th of January 2014. After Monday’s paper, on getting to school the following day (yesterday), we d students were surprised to see what was happening. We had prepared for the exam of that day, hoping that we will soon be ending d session after d exam. But the youth and women of d community where my school is located were busy rioting and protesting because they were not employed during d recent employment intakes.

    “They said the school had neglected their host community in place of outsiders. So they disrupted normal activities of the school, and up till today 08/01/2014, we have not written d exam. They have gone violent, they put coffin covered with red cloth in front of d sch, with a black pot with palm oil inside, with other charms.

    “Currently, academic activities in my sch has ended until further notice. And they’re ready 2 continue d protest until d Federal govt comes to their aid. We the students are angry because our efforts made in preparing for d exam are in vain. The school administration told us that they have seen d king of Uvwie kingdom to resolve the issue but it has worsened today, and d rioters are ready to continue d protest for a long time.

    “I believe d cause of the riot is beyond what the angry mobs claimed. There must be some undercover things that the sch administration has been doing since, which d community happened to be aware of.

  • ‘Hairdressing is my starting point’

    ‘Hairdressing is my starting point’

    Amos Adeleke, a 300-Level student of History and International Studies at the Adekunle Ajasin University in Akungba-Akoko (AAUA), Ondo State, has a passion for hairdressing, which is considered as a women’s trade. He tells DAMILOLA OLISA (200-Level Mass Communication) why he chose to be a hairdresser.

    How did you become a hairdresser?

    I have a passion for hairdressing and it is not something I am doing out of idleness. It is what I have interest for. If anyone must do something like this, he would have to first create an interest for it. One has to have good intention and practise it on a bigger scale; it should not be that you want to do it because people are doing it. I have passion for it and I can say the little I am getting from it is making a way for me. Today, a university degree is not enough to carry one through; one needs a vocational job to keep one engaged.

    When did you start the vocation fully?

    It was in 2012. That was the time I decided to make it big. I think I am doing fine now with the way people appreciate my handiwork.

    What motivated you to go into hairdressing?

    I love to see ladies looking beautiful with hairstyles. This really motivated my interest and with the fashion show I saw on television, I just felt I should explore the talent. I believe it is lucrative because ladies need to look good all the time.

    This is a vocation for women, how do you cope?

    That was then, but this time around, men engage in vocations that are considered feminine while women also do men’s job. It was in the past that people felt ashamed about it. Now, there is nothing like stigmatisation. As a guy, I feel so honoured and proud that I am a hairdresser or whatever anybody calls it because I am making money from it.

    Would you practise the vocation after your graduation from the university?

    In as much as I want to make money from hairdressing, my primary aim, which is to get education, comes first. After my first degree, I will go for a Master’s degree and apply to be a lecturer. I also have passion for teaching. But now that I have not secured a lecturing job, I have to concentrate on my hairdressing vocation.

    What are the challenges you encountered?

    I found it a bit difficult when I started. I asked myself how I would twist my hands and make beautiful hairdo for ladies. At a point, I felt it was not possible because of the new skills and styles. But for the passion, I endured and practised. But the secret is: if you can build confidence in yourself, your job is done. It may be rough at the beginning, but immediately one masters the trade, everything becomes so easy.

    Do you get emotional appeals when you plait ladies’ hair?

    It depends on how one relates with his customers. Some ladies do make advances, but I handle such in a professional way. Yes, one may be tempted because touching women’s hair has made you to touch everything in their body. By the virtue of my job, I have to touch but it must not go beyond business level.

    How do you cope with your academics?

    It is a matter of decision, passion and determination. If one has passion for what he is doing, there will always be time to ensure balance with other activities. Although, it is not easy. This semester, for instance, is not favourable for me because my lectures start at 8am and end by 5pm. You wonder how I will go to my shop to still plait people’s hair. But I want to ensure that I deal with my academics without lagging behind in hairdressing.

    Who is your role model?

    The person who influenced my love for hairdressing is known as Mr Mark; he is based in Lagos. He made hair for Agbani Darego in 2003, when she became the Miss World.

    Where will you be in the next five years?

    With the passion, I see myself making hairdo for first ladies, governors, commissioners and presidents. I also see myself getting my trademark.

  • Rival unions fight to be students’ voice

    Rival unions fight to be students’ voice

    In the late 1970s, Anambra State youths studying in higher institutions came together to establish the National Union of Anambra State Students (NUASS) as their apex body.

    This was during the administration of Chief Jim Nwobodo as governor of the old Anambra State.

    The union was registered with the Ministry of Education and also recognised by the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS).

    For decades, Anambra students identified with the union and established local chapters in their institutions.

    But a few months to the governorship election in the state, the union became polarised, leading to the birth of Anambra State Students’ Association (ANSSA), which is claiming to be the apex body for all Anambra State students.

    ANSSA’s founders claim that the union has been in existence since 2012.

    It was learnt that some aggrieved NUASS members floated the splinter association because, according to them, the union has become inefficient and moribund.

    Penultimate week, all hell was let loose when the rival groups clashed at Noble Suite Hotel in Awka, the Anambra State capital, where ANSSA was meeting. But for the quick intervention of riot policemen, the fracas would have degenerated.

    NUASS, led by Israel Anozie, a student of Anambra State University (ANSU), alleged that ANSSA members were being sponsored by politicians for selfish reasons. ANSSA denied the allegation.

    ANSSA, which is being led by Emmanuel Ngini, a 300-Level student of ANSU, claimed the union was founded in 2012 but was not recognised by the government.

    Our correspondent gathered that the Ministry of Education denied ANSSA registration beacuse its aims and objectives were the same as those of NUASS.

    When the Education ministry denied it registration, the association, CAMPUSLIFE gathered, approached the Ministry of Youth and Sports.

    “Some disgruntled elements connived to establish a new Anambra students’ body and went to the Ministry of Education for registration. Their plan fell flat when they were told that the association would not be registered because it would duplicate the functions of NUASS. We later learnt that they went to the Ministry of Youths and Sports with the help of some politicians to get their group registered at all cost. We believe the students are being used by some political leaders to polarise our union, which is why we oppose the formation of ANSSA as a students’ body,” a member of NUASS said, pleading not to be named.

    When ANSSA members learnt that NUASS had finalised plans with the government to pay students bursary, they hurriedly organised a “secret meeting” tagged “Brainstorming session to discuss bursary payment and scholarship issues”.

    When NUASS got wind of the meeting, Anozie, its national president, mobilised members in the Federal University of Technology, Owerri (FUTO) in Imo State, Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) in Zaria, Kaduna State, and the University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT) in Rivers State and stormed the venue of the meeting. Riot policemen were invited to disperse the students.

    In an interview with CAMPUSLIFE after the incident, Anozie said Ngini was trying to factionalise the union to make it a stooge for politicians in the state. Anozie said he mobilised students to disrupt the ANSSA meeting because he believed security agents would arrest him should there be a security breach there.

    He said: “We got information about the meeting from a NANS official, who asked if I was aware of a secret meeting by ANSSA members on bursary payment at Noble Suite Hotel in Awka. I was surprised because I knew there was no such meeting. When we got there, we saw Ngini, who is claiming to be the president of ANSSA, saying they were organising students-stakeholders meeting on bursary and scholarship. When we asked them where they got authorisation to hold such meeting, they started shouting on us. It was in the process of exchanging words that fracas broke out.”

    Asked if he was aware of ANSSA’s existence before that clash, Anozie said that the conveners of the splinter group became aggrieved after the reconciliatory meeting chaired by a Director of Higher Education in the Ministry of Education.

    “After that meeting, some students that are not members of the executive body in their various schools conspired to float another association as conduit pipe to extort money from unwary politicians. I heard that they went ahead later to register the body under the Ministry of Youth and Sports when they were turned back at the Ministry of Education. Is Youth and Sports Ministry supposed to be in charge of educational matters in the state?” Anozie queried.

    The ABU chapter president, Emeka Okoye, a 400-Level Water Resources and Environmental Engineering student, said: “The NUASS has been in existence since the 1970s; how can a group of students come up with the idea of dividing the union for selfish reason? They established ANSSA last year and started claiming to be a national body. In fact, ANSSA is a fraud and it will soon go into extinction.”

    But Ngini, a 300-Level Mass Communication student, denied the allegation that ANSSA was established for political reason, saying the association was floated as a substitute to the “moribund and inefficient” NUASS.

    He said: “I can confirm to you that ANSSA is duly registered with the Ministry of Youth and Sports, which is the body charged with registration of associations. The NUASS officials are claiming that they are recognised by the Ministry of Education but we are talking about registration.

    “They came to disrupt our programme where students were expressing their opinions on issue of bursary and scholarship with education stakeholders. They came and disrupted the whole event. We did not come together to put pressure on the government for anything but all we wanted was to ensure that the welfare of the students is attended to. But these people came and destroy everything.”

    Ngini alleged that he was beaten up with Robinson Okoye, the event’s chairman, adding that valuables, such as wristwatch, mobile phones, laptops, ATM card and N35,000 cash were stolen by the intruders.

    CAMPUSLIFE gathered that members of the rival groups were detained by the State Security Service (SSS) in Awka but the NANS president, Yinka Gbadebo, reportedly facilitated their release.

    There has been no love lost between the opposing groups since then.

    But which between the groups is the legitimate body since both were registered by government? Which ministry is supposed to register students’ union? Why did ANSSA meet in a hotel instead of campus? Which is the legitimate apex body for Anambra students – NUASS or ANSSA?