Category: Campus Life

Librarians from different parts of the country gathered at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) to learn the application of free and open source software to create, generate and disseminate information in libraries.

It was organised by the Librarians’ Registration Council of Nigeria, (LRCN) and the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA)

LRCN Registrar, Dr Victoria Okojie said the workshop was informed by the need to acquaint librarians with the requisite Information Communication Technology (ICT) skill that will assist them to meet the demands of information seekers.

“This workshop aims to make librarians and information managers aware of the possibilities that free and open-source software offer libraries to evolve and to facilitate information sharing. It will also strengthen their technical capacity in deploying FOSS tools such as DSpaceTM, GreenstoneTM, KohaTM and ABCDTM. We are here to encourage knowledge workers in Nigeria to share experience and exchange information through the available communication technology platform,’’ she said.

Okojie said the software was free, accessible and easy to maintain, regretting that most librarians were either unaware of its availability or lacked the skills to use the facility.

She commended the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Bartho Okolo and the University Librarian Prof Charles Omekwu, for making the conference a success.

The Commissioner for Education in Enugu State, Prof Chris Okoro, said that the state government was paying attention to the development of libraries in the state and making ICT infrastructure available to people at the grassroots. He promised to partner with the LRCN to train Librarians in state.

The Vice-Chancellor, Prof Bartho Okolo, said that his administration was ready to foster the development of library facilities in the University.

“The facilities that have been brought here in the past four years have helped to make our library what it is today. We are committed to making facilities available enhance service delivery”, he said.

He said the interest of his administration in the University library was informed by the strategic importance of libraries to the growth and accreditation of tertiary institution by regulatory agencies in the country. He thanked the LRCN for taking steps to enhance the performance of libraries in the country.

The Acting Director-General of NITDA, Dr A. S. Daura, commended the effort of LRCN in training librarians in up-to-date ICT skills, saying that his agency was ready to partner with LRCN and other stakeholders to produce guidelines for library standard and practice in Nigeria. He stated that the guidelines would serve as a blue print for promoting the application of ICT in the Libarary system.

He expressed optimism that participants would support the digital transformation agenda of the Federal Government.

 

The Yaba College of Technology (YABATECH) in Lagos was in turmoil last Thursday, as some students went after a group of boys suspected to be cultists, who macheted a student. The action disrupted academic and social activities. WALE AJETUNMOBI and MARK ORGU (300-Level Educational Management, School of Technical Education, YABATECH) report.

SOME students were having a nice time in the Complex Hall’s common room when the boys arrived, blocking the entrance. They stopped people from entering or leaving. Unaware of what was happening, Chinonso Anyankura, Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the National Association of Anambra State Students, arrived on the scene. He insisted on going in and the boys, who were suspected to be cultists descended on him. The attack on their colleague infuriated other students.

The following day, they went after the boys, who macheted Chinonso.

They abandoned their books and a test to seek redress for a colleague. They shocked members of the college community, who woke up to the students’ fury.

Many students were watching a UEFA Champions league match in the Complex Hall common room on Wednesday when the suspected cultists dealt Chinonso machete blows.

Eyewitnesses told CAMPUSLIFE that trouble started when the suspected cultists stormed the room.

A student, who pleaded not to be named, said:“The guy (Chinonso) did not know they were cultists and tried to challenge them. They pounced on him; he was boxed to a corner where he was attacked with cutlasses.”

Other students scampered for safety as the victim was being beaten by the assailants, who left him in a pool of his own blood. He was rushed to a clinic on the campus, where he was stabilised. The suspected cultists fled.

The students regrouped and chased the cultists to an off-campus area, but the assailants were not found. The incident triggered a midnight protest by occupants of the Complex Hall, who said cult attacks on students were becoming rampant. They cited cases of cultists invading the campus to harass students.

The protesters, who vandalised properties in the hall, said the campus was becoming unsafe for them, because “students now live at the mercy of criminals”. The protest was led by Students’ Union Government (SUG) officials.

The next day, students refused to go back to their hostel. They gathered in front of the ETF Hall, barricading the main and alternative gates. They prevented staff members from entering the campus and demanded to see the Rector, Dr Margret Ladipo, who was not around during the demonstration.

The make-shift tents raised by Techno Mobile, which sponsors the ongoing Rector’s Cup competition, were vandalised.

Efforts by some staff members to placate the students failed. The protesters stood their ground that they wanted to speak to the Rector. CAMPUSLIFE learnt that the Dean of Students’ Affairs, Mr O.T. Raheem, who tried to pacify the protesters, was pelted with sachet water. He left the scene hurriedly.

The school security personnel watched as students used all sorts of materials to barricade the main gate. Policemen deployed to maintain order were pelted with stones and sachet water by the students, but they did not fire any shot.

The protesters, who went to the hostels to call out more students, prevented anyone from taking their pictures. An ND 1 student, who took pictures of the protest with his phone, was attacked; he was beaten to a pulp before he was rescued by the Man O’ War cadets. The student was taken to the clinic by the cadets.

A member of the Students’ Union Representative Council, who did not want his name in print, accused the management of indifference to the students’ plight.

“Just last month, a student was shot by a group of boys outside the school gate in the night. Nobody said anything because the shooting did not occur on the campus. As the cultists left the school yesterday (Wednesday) after they injured Chinonso, we learnt they went to disrupt a students’ departmental party in Yaba. For how long will cultists harass students while the management remains indifferent?” he asked.

An ND II student, who simply identified himself as Amadi, described Chinonso as non-violent. He said: “I still saw him a few minutes before he was attacked. I don’t believe that he is a cult member as some people claimed. Even after he was treated in the clinic, he still kept his calm. He just sat down and looked into space. This confirms that he is not a cult member.”

Several hours after the demonstration, Dr Ladipo arrived to address the students. She described the incident as unfortunate, saying the culprits would be brought to book. The management, she said, was doing its best to strengthen security on the campus, noting that such occurrence was a one-off thing.

The management has set up a panel to look into the matter. The panel comprises four students, including SUG president. The panel will look into the immediate cause of the crisis, with a view to stopping the harassment of students.

The Rector prayed for peace in the school, urging God to punish troublemakers.

In the past three years, the Nigerian Law School (NLS) has been increasing tuition fees. The latest hike, which takes effect from the 2013/14 session, puts the fee at N295,000. Law graduates are complaining that the hike may debar them from attending the Law School and kill their dream of becoming lawyers. They spoke to UCHE ANICHEBE (500-Level Law, Nnamdi Azikiwe University).

LAW graduates usually look forward to going tot he Law School because that is the only route to becoming a lawyer. A law degree amounts to nothing to the holder if he does not attend Law School because he can never practise as a lawyer.

But as it stands, the dreams of many who wish to become lawyers is hanging in the balance despite having law degrees. Despite their degrees, they may not be able to attend the Nigerian Law School (NLS), which begins a new session next month.

Reason: the hike in fees to N295, 000. Many graduates said they cannot afford the fee, expressing fears that with such a high fee, their dreams of being called to the Bar may be killed.

Students, who spoke to CAMPUSLIFE urged the government to reduce the fee. Our investigations revealed that there has been a steady increase in Law School fee in the past few years.

In 2011, students paid N245,000. The following year, it was N280,000. And this year, it is N295, 000. Many students believe that the hike is uncalled for.

“The Law School fee is too exorbitant. To make matters worst, they increase the fee every year. I once expressed this concern to some senior lawyers, but their response was that the legal profession is not meant for the poor. To me, that is ridiculous. We must understand that it is not high tuition that makes the legal profession noble,” said Ilias Kazeem, a graduate of Law from the University of Ilorin (UNILORIN).

He added: “If the Nigerian Council of Legal Education is interested in training lawyers with good virtues and commitment to nation building, it should reduce the school fees, because it is sending the wrong signal to the public that the legal profession is all about money.”

For Uche Nweke-Eze, a Law graduate from Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK), Awka, the rising fee could discourage poor students from becoming lawyers. “Though, the hike fee is justifiable by the high cost of teaching at the Law School. But N295, 000 seems reasonable considering the high cost of academic materials, feeding, and general upkeep which students have to contend with during the programme. In my view, the fees could discourage legal education in Nigeria. We must ensure that this development is checked. Our parents cannot afford to cough out this huge sum. We should not make legal education the exclusive preserve of the rich.”

The Council did not take the economic hardship in the country into consideration before it increased the school fees, 500-Level Law student of Bayero University, Kano (BUK), who simply identified herself as Aisha, said. She said the increment would discourage many law graduates from proceeding to the law school.

A 500-Level student of Law at Ebonyi State University (EBSU), Sandra Ugochukwu, believes that there are many fake lawyers because many could not afford the Law School’s fee. She said: “The law school fee is outrageous. Those that cannot afford it may, out of frustration, engage in criminal activities as a means to keep themselves busy till they are able to raise the tuition fee.”

The intervention of government at all levels is needed to revert the fee hike, Tomiwa Ilori, a student of the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, said.

A Law student of Imo State University, Owerri (IMSU), who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said: “For the past five years, it was my uncle who has been seeing me through university. Things got difficult for him recently. To now ask him to commit suicide because he wants to pay my Law School fee is bad. At the moment, I am very devastated because I don’t know where to get that kind of money. I want the government to come to our aid. My dream of becoming a lawyer must not die.”

There have been reports that authorities of the Council of Legal Education (CLE) are pushing for the financial autonomy of the Nigerian Law School. But Innocent Akpuchukwu, a law graduate of UNIZIK believes students should not been made to bear the brunt. “As laudable as this objective may appear, the rate at which the fee increases every year is quite alarming. I want the Federal Government and all state governments to subsidise this fee for the students. We should not make education a commodity for the rich. Nigeria belongs to all of us.”

A graduate of the Nigerian Law School and a legal practitioner, Maduka Onwukeme, recounted his experience, which he described as unbearable. He said: “When I was due for Law School in 2011, the fee was pegged at N245, 000. This was after I paid N16,500 to obtain the form. Raising the funds was difficult for me because my parents were retired civil servants and had difficulty getting their retirement benefits. My dad had to put up his car for sale so we could raise the money. It was a harrowing experience for me. I believe that the high fee being paid at the Law School is unjustifiable and can hinder the poor from becoming lawyers.”