The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Michael Okpara University of Agriculture

  • Gunmen kill 23-year-old female admission seeker in Aba

    Barely five days after, Mr. Ugochukwu Mbadi who had one month to wed his heartthrob was murdered in the Ogbor Hill axis of Aba, Abia state by some hoodlums, a 23 year old girl, whose name was given as Miss Margret Stanley was at the weekend shot dead by gunmen.

    The incident occurred on Road 8, Federal Housing Estate also in Ogbor Hill.

    Margret was said to have gained admission to study one of the science courses at the Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, near Umuahia, but had to defer the admission due the parent’s downward financial position.

    She decided to take up appointment as a teacher in one of the privately owned schools in the area.

    It was gathered that on Friday morning, Margret who hailed from Ohafia in Ohafia Local Government of the state, left home for her school to participate in the end of term activities heralding the Easter break.

    After the end of the activities, Margret was said to have left their school around 11.00am and decided to trek down to her parent’s home few metres away from the Federal Housing Estate.

    On getting to Road 8 of the Estate, she was said to have gone to the house of a relation to collect her phone which she kept there to recharge the battery when she was going to school.

    A source disclosed that immediately Margret came out of the building on Road 8, clutching her phone in her hand, two young men who were riding from the Emelogu end towards the Estate, in a tricycle popularly known keke nepep, accosted her.

    The source said initially, people thought the occupants of the tricycle were engaged in fruitful discussion with the deceased until when one of the men pulled his gun and shot the girl on the head.

    “Immediately the first shot went out, the girl fell flat on the ground, then the gunmen came down, collected her purse and phone and left unchallenged. The sound of the gun sent fears down the spine of the few people doing business in the area as they scampered for safety”.

    A patent medicine dealer in the area, Emmanuel Nwanma, who said his attention was drawn to the incident by a young boy, said when he went to the scene about 40 minutes the hoodlums had fled, the girl was still breathing.

    READ ALSO: Gunmen kill housewife, 3-yr-old daughter in Kebbi

    Nwanma said he put the girl in his car and hurriedly took her to Azuka police station to register the incident first before she was rushed to a nearby hospital.

    He said it was while doctors were battling to remove the bullet which lodged in her brain, that Margret breathed her last.

    A relation of the deceased, who wouldn’t want his name in print for security reasons, accused the Azuka police of demanding N150, 000 for her autopsy.

    He said if the parents had such money, that the girl would have been at Michael Okpara University, Umuahia where she gained admission and would not have stayed at home to die in the hands of gunmen.

    Efforts to reach PPRO, Geoffrey Ogbonna failed as his phone number is yet to be reached at the time of filing the report.

  • FG tasks governing council of 23 federal universities on funding

    The Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu has urged the newly inaugurated governing council of 23 federal universities to look inward to broaden the Internally Generated Revenue Base (IGR) of the universities.

    Adamu gave this advice on Tuesday in Abuja at the inauguration of the reconstituted governing board of the universities.

    He also called on the councils to look inward to broaden the Internally Generated Revenue Base (IGR) of the universities with a view to support the universities.

    According to the minister, the governing council should annually review the university budget to monitor its performance and assess the overall impact of its implementation.

    “In view of the current economic situation in the country, I call for the prudent management of the scarce resources while efforts should be intensified to broaden the Internally Generated Revenue Base of each university.

    “You should also ensure the judicious application of revenues so generated,’’ Adamu said.

    The minister also called on the council to be agents of change by seeing to it that every act of corruption was avoided in their various universities.

    “You should join the crusade of the Federal Government in the fight against corruption, by making this fight visible in the universities.

    “As seasoned and successful individuals in the public, private sectors and in your various professions, you will be expected to live above board in the discharge of your duties.

    “ Any corrupt practices by councils including condoling cases of indiscipline by staff, is bound to have a destructive effect on the system and on the products of the system, hence must be avoided,’’ he said.

    He, however, urged universities management to support the governing councils as they implement policies and decisions of the council.

    In his address, Prof. Abubakar Rasheed, the Executive Secretary, National Universities Commission called on the councils to display a high sense of commitment in the discharge of their duties.

    Rasheed, who emphasized the role of the council in the development of universities, said the commission would continue to support the councils to achieve its desired result.

    “NUC appreciates the critical role of the governing council in the development of Nigerian universities.

    “The NUC will continue to make itself available to ensure that it succeeds in its task and to succeed, every one of you should display a high sense of commitment, teamwork and dedication no matter the challenges,’’ he said.

    Also, Hon. Suleiman Aminu, Chairman, House Committee on Tertiary Education and TETFund stressed the need for the councils to synergise with Vice Chancellors of the universities to ensure unity of purpose.

    Aminu promised to work with the legislature to ensure that universities were properly funded, adding that the various leakages in the universities must be blocked.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that President Muhammadu Buhari sometimes in April constituted the chairmen of governing councils of these universities.

    The selection was made in cognizance with provisions of the respective legislation with respect to composition, competence, credibility, integrity, federal character and geo-political spread.

    Those inaugurated are: Amb. Nimota Akanbi, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi, Mukhtar Mohammed, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari, Bayero University, Kano, Sen. J.N. Waku, Federal University of Technology Akure and Prof. Shehu Zuru, Federal University of Petroleum Resources, Effurun.

    Others are, Prof.  Federal University of Technology, Minna, Prof. John Ofem, Federal University, Owerri, Mr Muhammad Zayyanu, Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike and Mr Bukar Zarma, Modibbo Adama Univrersity of Technology, Yola.

    Also to head are, Aziz Bello, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Sani Maikudi, University of Abuja, Dr Aboki Zhawa, Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Prof. Alkassum Abba, University of Agriculture Makurdi and Isah Ashiru, University of Benin.

    Others are, Sen. Nkechi Nwogu, University of Calabar, Joshua Waklek, University of Ibadan, Dr Jibril Oyekan, University of Ilorin, Tony Momoh, University of Jos, Dr Wale Babalakin, University of Lagos and Prof. Biodun Adesanya, University of Maiduguri.

    Also in the group are, Mike Olorunfemi, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Prof. A.C. Awujo, University of Jos and Hon. Pearl Enajere, Usman Danfodio University, Sokoto.

     

  • Students protest against scrapping of non-agricultural courses in Michael Okpara varsity

    Students protest against scrapping of non-agricultural courses in Michael Okpara varsity

    Students of  the College of Management Sciences (COLMAS) of Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike in Abia, on Thursday  protested against the Federal Government’s policy scrapping seven courses in the college.

    The affected courses are Accounting, Banking and Finance, Marketing, Economics, Entrepreneurial Studies, Industrial Relations and Business Administration.

    The students protested to the office of the Dean of the college, Prof John Ihendinihu, and called on the management of the university to initiate steps toward the restoration of the courses.

    The President, Association of Management Science Students (AMSS) of the university, Mr. Uzoma Onuoha, said that they were disturbed by the news of the scrapping of the courses.

    Onuoha said that they were worried by the development and wanted to know what the management was doing about it.

    “We appeal to you sir to ensure that something is done fast to restore the programmes.

    “We can never be violent or engage in any act that would bring shame to the university as we continue to express our dissatisfaction with the policy,” he said.

    The students carried placards, some of which read: “Restore our programme in JAMB brochure.

    “The scrapped management programmes were approved by relevant professional bodies” and “Management programmes in MOUAU have been in existence since 2003’.”

    Responding, the dean said that the college with the university management was on top of the situation and hoped to get positive response from the relevant authority.

    He urged the students to remain calm and peaceful.

    Ihendinihu said that the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development came up with the policy to scrap non-agriculture courses from the three universities of agriculture in Nigeria.

    The affected institutions are MOUAU, Federal University of Agriculture, Makurdi (FUNAM) and Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB).

    He alleged that the ministry had relaxed the policy in FUNAM and FUNAAB and the affected courses restored in the current JAMB brochure for the two universities.

    He said that the decision to relax the policy in the other institutions and exclusion of MOUAU was discriminatory.

    He said the university had set up a committee with three professors from the college as members to handle the issue.

    Ihendinihu, who was flanked by heads of departments in the college, later told newsmen that the offering of management sciences did not breach the lawb that established the university.

    He said the law “provides for a tripod mandate of teaching, research and extension in agriculture and related/allied disciplines.”

    Ihendinihu said MOUAU established six colleges for core agricultural programmes and six other “complementary colleges”, which included COLMAS, to provide foundational courses in “related/allied disciplines.”

    He appealed to the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, to order the immediate restoration of the scrapped COLMAS programmes in MOUAU as done for the others.

    He said that the college had 6,735 regular and 4,196 part-time students as well as 172 members of staff, whose fate was now uncertain because of the new policy.

    The dean explained that the policy would further worsen the fate of Abia indigenes seeking university admission.

    He said Abia was disadvantaged compared with other states in terms of the distribution of Federal Government-owned tertiary educational institutions as MOUAU was the only one in the state.

     

  • NACA, Nigeria Centre for Disease Control deny AIDS cure

    NACA, Nigeria Centre for Disease Control deny AIDS cure

    National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA) and Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) have refuted the claim by one Maduike Ezeibe, a Professor of Veterinary Medicine and Clinical Virology at the Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, claiming to have discovered a new drug for the cure of HIV/AIDS.

    In a statement jointly signed by NACA Director-General, Dr Sani Aliyu and CEO NCDC, Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu the duo stated that having examined the facts, the study of the claimant was published in two little known, fee-charging ‘predatory’ journals and involved less than ten patients.

    Both Aliyu and Dr Ihekweazu said it is necessary to make the clarification because there was really no basis for a claim to cure AIDS in the study.

    “We are concerned that the publicity given to these claims will stop patients with HIV from taking life-saving antiretrovirals and give them false hope of a cure. It will be a great disservice to this vulnerable group of patients for the media to disseminate these claims in the absence of sound scientific evidence.

    “There are long-established, tried and tested routes for the discovery, development and validation of modern medicines before they can be registered and used for the treatment of humans and animals. We call on all academics to follow legal and scientifically acceptable methods in conducting their research and to avoid making premature claims that are capable of derailing the huge progress made in the last two decades in the war against HIV/AIDS.

    “Millions of lives have been saved as a result of modern antiretroviral treatment and people living with HIV can now look forward to a normal healthy future. We continue to support the hard and diligent work being done by scientists in our Universities and research institutions around the country. We are always ready to partner with our scientists on all aspects of HIV research provided this is in line with international best practice,” they explained.
    The duo faulted the clinical trial done by the claimant stating thus: In the “clinical trial” as reported, there was no evidence of the use of controls, which is the basis of all efficacy trials.  Without controls, you can neither have randomization nor blinding, two other critical factors in studying the effects of new medicines.  Critically the primary outcome measured in this study was based on plasma viral load levels that are known to fluctuate in patients, even in the absence of any intervention. It is also worth noting that virological suppression (viral load less than 50 copies/ml) was not achieved in six or eight of patients.
    “There appeared to be no medical doctor involved in the execution of this study and there was no evidence on where or how the patients were treated or monitored during this study, their clinical and treatment status at the beginning or at the end of it, the statement read.

    They stated that: Clinical trials are conducted in a series phases – each phase is designed to answer a separate research question. These include; 1.) Phase I: Researchers test a new drug or treatment in a small group of people for the first time to evaluate its safety 2.) Phase II: The drug or treatment is given to a larger group of people to see if it is effective 3.) Phase III: The drug or treatment is given to large groups of people to confirm its effectiveness, comparing it to commonly used treatments, and Phase IV: Studies are done to gather information on the drug’s effect in various populations and any side effects associated with long-term use,” they summated.

    But, “the authors of this study did not state what phase their study was and the results of previous phases, if these were done. One critical issue is that there was no evidence from the publication that the authors obtained ethical clearance from an appropriate body in Nigeria to conduct this study and only ambiguous evidence that ‘informed’ consent was sought from the evidently vulnerable patients,” read the statement.