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Tag: Ebonyi state university

  • SUG election: Police arrest three over gunshot incident at Ebonyi University

    SUG election: Police arrest three over gunshot incident at Ebonyi University

    The Police in Ebonyi State have arrested three suspects in connection with a gunshot incident that disrupted the Students’ Union Government (SUG) election at Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki.

    The incident occurred on Monday at the College of Agricultural Science campus during the announcement of election results, when gunshots were reportedly fired to disperse students.

    According to the report, a student was hit by a stray bullet and rushed to the Federal Teaching Hospital, Abakaliki, for urgent treatment.

    READ ALSO: 2027: ex-President Jonathan just one of our options, says PDP

    Police spokesperson Joshua Ukandu confirmed the arrests on Tuesday, naming the suspects as Lawrence Azubuike, Ibe Kenneth, and Njoku Joshua. He added that a locally made pistol was recovered.

    Ukandu said the suspects remain in custody and will be arraigned after investigations.

    He further noted that the Commissioner of Police, Adaku Uche-Anya, has assured the public of the command’s commitment to peace and security, urging officers to remain professional and accountable while intensifying efforts to curb crime, especially as the festive season approaches.

  • Two die, three injured as truck rams into bus in Abakaliki

    Two die, three injured as truck rams into bus in Abakaliki

    Tragedy struck early Saturday morning in Abakaliki, capital of Ebonyi state when a truck rammed into a commercial bus in front of Ebonyi State University (EBSU) Permanent Site, leaving two people dead and three others injured.

    Sector Commander of Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), in Ebonyi State, Anthony Ogbodo

    said the crash occurred around 6:05a.m along the Abakaliki–Enugu Expressway. 

    The incident, which he said is classified as a fatal road traffic crash, involved a Mercedes 911 truck with registration number TTM467XA and a white Mitsubishi bus marked KMM426XA.

    The Sector Commander, who attributed the accident to dangerous driving, said it involved ten occupants—seven men, a woman, a female child, and a male child. 

    “Two passengers, a man and a woman, were confirmed dead, while three men sustained varying degrees of injuries”, Mr Ogbodo said

    The Sector Commander said the FRSC Zebra 31 Unit in Abakaliki, which responded to the distress call within 10 minutes, evacuated the injured victims to the Federal Teaching Hospital Abakaliki (FETHA II) for treatment. 

    “The bodies of the deceased were deposited at the FETHA I morgue after medical confirmation”.

    “The wreckage was cleared to restore traffic flow, while both vehicles were handed over to the police traffic division for further investigation”, he added.

    The Sector Commander cautioned motorists against reckless and dangerous driving, warning that such behavior is the major cause needless loss of lives on the highways.

  • Ebonyi probes sack of 63 varsity workers

    The Ebonyi State Executive Council Committee investigating the sack of over 63 lecturers and staff of the Ebonyi State University (EBSU) has started sitting with a pledge to be fair to all parties concerned.

    The EBSU  management last December, sacked over 63 lecturers and workers of the institution for various offences, ranging from doubtful certificates to multiple dates of birth.

    Their sack followed the recommendation of an audit report by a committee set up by the university’s governing council, which investigated all members of staff.

    The government committee to probe the sack is headed by the Commissioner for Information and State Orientation, Senator Emmanuel Onwe.

    Other members of the Committee include Deputy Chief of Staff, Government House, Abakaliki, Prof Fidelis Okpata and Commissioner for Education, Sabinus Nwankwegu.

    The committee held its maiden sitting at the mock Parliament Chambers, inside the EBSU main campus in Abakaliki. The dismissed staff and members of the university management were in attendance.

    Senator Onwe noted that the sack was not politically motivated as being speculated and that the committee was set up to ensure that those  sacked unjustly get justice.

    “I do not believe that anybody is here to victimise or punish anyone unnecessarily. However, one of the hallmarks of every institution that has grown to become historically great is to exercise discretion and to show compassion in every decision and that display of compassion is what the Governor of Ebonyi State holds dear and that is why he instituted this committee to look at the decision that was taken and the outcry that arose from that decision.

    “We have seen the thoroughness with which the university did what they did, we have also seen the human impact and we have also seen the individuals that came to throw more light on what happened. All of these are the factors we are going to take into account and get to an objective impartiality and at the same time give a compassionate report and recommendations to the Governor,” he said.

    The Senator refused to give a hint of what the Committee’s final recommendation would look like.

    “We are not here to preempt the decision of this committee. We are here on an assignment, an assignment we are going to exercise with utmost ethical considerations and professionalism and we are going to present a report to the Executive Council of Ebonyi State and a final decision will be made by the chairman of that council and a visitor of this university,” he told newsmen.

    Earlier, Chairman of Non-Academic Staff Union (NASU) of the university, Comrade Emmanuel Obo, said the atmosphere in the institution was unconducive, following the sack of lecturers and staff and that the union had to declare industrial strike because of it.

    He, however, announced that the strike has been suspended following the setting up of the committee by the state government to look into the matter.

    “After due process, the union saw the process the Governor is making. In line with some of the requests we made before him, which one of them is, public hearing, the union as a result of that had to respect the Governor because he requested that we should suspend the strike to allow this process continue,” he said.

  • ABU students win programming contest

    Students of the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria have won the 7th Nigeria Universities Computer Programming Contest (NUCPC) organised by National Mathematical Centre (NMC).

    They beat 16 teams from both public and private universities in Nigeria to the gold prize.

    The Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA) came second while Ebonyi State University (EBSU) came third in the annual competition.

    Coordinator of the Computer Science Programme at NMC, Dr Jennifer Bamidele, revealed that the competition is aimed at sharpening the programming skills of students and to improve their knowledge of science and technology.

    She said: “There was a pertinent need to revive NUCPC because Nigeria is losing out both on the regional and international levels. Our students in computer science all over the institutions of the federation also need an avenue to perfect their programming skills and the applications of such to everyday life.”

    She said this year’s edition was interesting because of the introduction of some presentations before and in-between the contest.

    Bamidele urged the winners to go back and work hard to retain the trophy next year.

    Chief Executive Officer, NMC, Prof Stephen Onah, said the competition was organised to catch students young and expose them to areas that are similar in a competitive manner.

    Represented by Prof Fumilayo Saporu, Onah urged the students who participated in the competition to apply the knowledge gathered when they get back to their various universities.

    Nuhu Ibrahim, a 400-Level student of Computer Science, who spoke on behalf of ABU team,   expressed joy at the feat.

    “It came with a lot of practice.  We have been told long ago that this is what is coming up and we have been working together.  It is not about a single person’s effort; it is team work,” he said.

    Other winners include Covenant University (fourth), University of Ibadan (fifth), Federal University Lokoja (sixth), Ambrose Alli University (seventh) and Federal university of Technology, Owerri (eighth).

  • Adequate funding, solution to falling education standard – ex-ASUU president

    A former National President, Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Dr Dipo Fashina, says adequate funding remains the solution to falling education standard in Nigerian universities.

    Fashina stated this in a lecture entitled ‘Tertiary Education in Nigeria: Funding and Academic Standard’ he delivered at the 8th Convocation lecture series of Chukwuemeka Odimegwu Ojukwu University, Igbariam, Anambra State on Thursday.

    He noted that the present crisis in the system started with the introduction of an “individualistic socio-philosophical idealism” which harped on the privatization of the education sector.

    According to him, the World Bank’s Structural Adjustment Programme treated the education sector in Nigeria as a market.

    “The promotion of private universities had led to the abandonment of hostel projects, road network, accommodation, electricity and water projects in public universities.

    “The Nigerian University system is sick; many of these universities are worse than others.”

    The former ASUU president noted that the problem of funding had been politicised, adding that the lack of allocation for capital development had adversely affected many public universities.

    He cited Ebonyi State University, Chukwuemeka Odimegwu Ojukwu University, Igbariam and Enugu State University of Technology as examples.

    “For instance, no capital allocation was released to Chukwuemeka Odimegwu Ojukwu University, Igbariam, from 2012 to 2016 and Enugu State University of Technology from 2012 to 2015.

    “You do not develop a university by only paying workers but by releasing allocations for projects.

    “The funding of state universities is useless and those in position to advice the politicians have failed to call them to order.”

    While noting that researches in universities had dropped with emphasis on text book knowledge, Fashina said it was the task of students and lecturers to prevail on political leaders to fund research projects.

    In a remark, the Vice Chancellor of the University, Prof. Fidelis Okafor, commended Fashina for delivering the lecture.

    Okafor expressed the hope that the lecture would give advantage to university administration in the country.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the convocation proper will hold on Friday at the Igbariam campus, where Chief Jim Nwobodo, Prof. Kingsley Muoghalu and Mr Chike Onyejekwe will receive honorary degrees.

     

  • CD lauds UN for institutionalising democracy

    The Campaign for Democracy (CD) on Monday lauded the UN for its commitment to democracy in all countries of the world, especially in Africa.

    The South East Secretary of the non-governmental organisation, Dr Jerry Chukwuokolo, gave the commendation while speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Enugu on the achievements of the organisation, 71 years after.

    Chukwuokolo said that the world body had made it clear and followed up with action that military rule should not be allowed in any country, especially in Africa where military dictatorship held sway previously.

    “The fear of the UN had made military officers to maintain their constitutional role of protecting the territorial integrity of countries and not to meddle into politics.

    “Also, UN action to re-instate democratically elected leaders ousted by the military in some countries had shown that democracy had come to stay,’’ he said.

    The secretary also lauded the UN for its concern for poverty alleviation, hunger and disease in poor countries, which most African countries belonged to.

    “UN had done a lot in education, healthcare and rural infrastructural development in Nigeria as well as its recent intervention in bringing succour to millions of displaced and starving people in the North East,’’ he added.

    Chukwuokolo, who is also a lecturer in political science at the Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki, said that the UN had intervened and helped to end civil wars and wars between neighbouring Africa countries.

    “Billions of dollars had been spent to bring peace to troubled African nations both as intra-national or inter-national conflicts.

    “It had adjudicated through its international court in cases of land and marine border disputes and saved the continent and her people needless conflicts and bloodshed.’’

    Chukwuokolo said, however, that the UN was being used as a tool to advance the interest of member states of its security council and its allies.

    “Respect for the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as enshrined in the UN General Assembly Charter is not upheld.

    “Some indigenous people in Africa wishing to gain their freedom are not backed up by the UN as it backed democracy and its principles so far.’’

    UN is a replacement for the ineffective League of Nations. The organisation was established on Oct. 24, 1945 after World War II to prevent the occurrence of such conflict.

    At its founding, the UN had 51 member states but currently has 193 members, including Nigeria.

  • Robbers invade Ebonyi varsity

    Robbers invade Ebonyi varsity

    Hoodlums on Tuesday invaded an Automated Teller Machine (ATM) belonging to an old generation bank at the College of Agricultural Science (CAS) campus of Ebonyi State University Abakaliki, carting away millions of naira.

    This comes barely three weeks after robbers invaded the Simeon Oduoye female hostel of the same school and robbed the students of different items.

    Sources said the hoodlums beat all the security checks in the school and proceeded to the ATM where they carted away money amounting to over N10 million which the bank officials loaded in the machine for customers.

    ‘’The robbers came into the campus in the night and went straight into the bank. They later carted away millions of naira which was loaded in the day time by the bank officials.

    ‘’We learnt that up to N12million was stolen during the incident. I can’t tell the actual amount but all I know is that there was robbery in this bank,’’ one of the sources said.

    Another source claimed that the hoodlums first sacked the security officials at the entrance gate before entering the bank.

    Police Spokesman, DSP Chris Anyanwu who confirmed the robber said the actual amount stolen by the robbers has not been ascertained.

    ‘’Yes, there was robbery incident in one of the old generation banks located in CAS campus of Ebonyi State University.

    ‘’The robbers broke the ATM of the bank and carted away all the money inside it. We are hearing different figures stolen and the bank officials have not given us the figure of the amount carted away by the robbers.

    ‘’Investigation has already commenced and it is after the investigation that we will be able to tell you a particular amount stolen,’’ Anyanwu said.