The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Prof. AbdulGaniyu Ambali

  • UNILORIN VC debunks allegations of corrupt practices

    Prof. AbdulGaniyu Ambali, Vice-Chancellor, University of Ilorin has debunked allegations of corrupt practices levelled against the university administration, saying many people were not aware of the universities procedures.

     

    Ambali stated his position in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Tuesday.

     

    The vice-chancellor said that the university followed laid down guidelines in appointments of staff, payment of entitlements to principal officers and reappointment of principal officers.

     

    The don, however, expressed concern that many people in the university community were not familiar with these laid down guidelines and felt cheated for one reason or the other.

     

    “ In respect of appointments, all appointments are based on rules and regulations governing the appointment.

     

    “ Any request for engagement within the university are sent to the Heads of Department, who comment based on their own rules and regulations within the department; they either approve or disapprove.

     

    “We send a letter of apology to the applicant but if they approve we continue the process of the engagement; first at temporary level before the appointment is ratified along the way.

     

    “ Unfortunately, people are not very conversant with the rules and regulations governing all these things,” he said.

     

    The vice-chancellor also explained that for the entitlement of vice-chancellors and former vice-chancellors the management followed what the rules and regulations governing the campus stipulated.

     

    According to him, sitting principal officers who are serving, when their tenure ends and they want to return to the university, they will have to revert to their former status before their appointment for example vice-chancellor.

     

    Ambali added that such a person would also be paid the salary of the new position which off course would not be up to what they earned in their previous position.

     

    He explained that all contracts awarded by the institution followed due processes.

     

    NAN reports that some officers of the South-West Zone of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) had accused the University of pension fund fraud running into N2.5 billion and called on the anti-graft agency to institute a probe into the matter.

     

    The allegations listed in the petition included pension fraud, unremitted deductions, extortion from students, contract inflation and kick-backs; as well as unlawful payments to ex-principal officers of the university.

     

    However, Mr Kunle Akogun, the institution’s Head of Corporate Affairs, also described the allegation as “largely empty merely rehashed to make it look real.

     

    Akogun described those behind the petition as “ enemies of progress,’’ who are aghast at the pace of progress and continual giant strides being daily recorded by the university where transparency, honesty, accountability and due process were the key elements of administration.

     

    According to him, there is nothing new in the allegations contained in the petition.

     

    “The same fellows made the same allegations in August last year while shamefacedly kicking against the nationally acknowledged well-merited appointment of Prof. Oloyede as the Registrar of JAMB.

     

    “And of course, no one took them seriously, as even President Muhammadu Buhari, who is well-known for his zero tolerance for corruption, is not unaware of the due diligence credentials of the successive administrations of the University of Ilorin,” he said.

  • UNILORIN partners enterpreneurs on inventions– VC

    Prof. AbdulGaniyu Ambali, Vice-Chancellor, University of Ilorin, says the university is partnering with some entrepreneurs to begin mass production of the speed limiting device at affordable prices.

    Ambali made this known while featuring at the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) forum in Abuja.

    He said the effort was in line with a call by the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) and the university’s mandate to contribute to the development of the country through research.

    ‘’University of Ilorin through our group of research scientists from various relevant disciplines have come together and they have came up with a device.

    “And that device was tested in-house, within the university campus and it worked.

    “So right now, we are at the stage of making mass production. We have been able to get one or two entrepreneurs in Lagos who are ready to put up some money to be able to help us do mass production of the device.’’

    Ambali said that the cost of the device would be affordable, adding that the aim was to reduce the burden on the people.

    He explained that the university had also signed agreement to ensure that the sugar research institute of the institution produced sugarcane seedlings to meet the needs of farmers.

    The vice-chancellor promised that the university would continue to lay emphasis on those things that would benefit the immediate community as well as the general populace.

    He said that the university had come up with an oil spillage-cleaning device that would help in the clean up of the Niger Delta region.

    “You are aware that the university has been able to come up with oil spillage cleaning device which is currently been tried by the government.

    “We have tried it and it works.

    “So of recent the Federal Government has given us the go ahead to talk with those that are cleaning the Niger Delta, so that we can contribute towards that,’’ he said.

    The vice-chancellor said that other achievements of the institution in the area of agriculture included the Palm tree, the Jetropha and teak (a tropical hardwood tree species) plantations.

    He said that the institution was collaborating with some industries toward the harvest and processing of these plantations once they are ready.

    Ambali added that the university authorities had always put up minimum of 18 infrastructural facilities in the school on yearly basis in the last four to five years.

    “Every year, we have been able to put up between 18 and 20 infrastructures ranging from classroom, office building, electricity, water supply, befitting security offices, hostel accommodation, roads to strengthening of security in the school,” he said.

  • Unilorin commences distribution of PC Tablets to students

    Unilorin commences distribution of PC Tablets to students

    The management of the University of  Ilorin says it has commenced the distribution of the outstanding PC tablets to affected students of the institution.

    A report in the university’s bulletin released on Monday in Ilorin said the exercise was in keeping with the management’s  commitment to the provision of effective teaching and learning aids.

    It said a management committee of the university had a meeting with student leaders and other stakeholders during which a time-table was fashioned out for the distribution exercise.

    Students of the Faculty of Law, the report said, were the first to receive their PC tablets.

    It would be recalled that the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Abdulganiyu Ambali,  had shortly before the Christmas and New Year break promised that the distribution exercise would commence in the second week of 2017.

    The report said that the delay in distributing the PC Tablets to students admitted during the 2015/2016 academic session was due to the inability of the contractor to supply the consignment on schedule due to foreign exchange challenges.

    It quoted the President of  the  institution’s students’ union, Shobowale Olawale, as commending the process, describing it  as “ satisfactory.’’

    “The Student Union is very excited about the Tablet distribution and on a general level, the students are also excited about the Tablets they received.

    “It is a dream come true because we have been expecting the Tablets for some time now,”  the report quoted Olawale as saying.

    According to the report, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Management Services), Prof. Yisa AbdulKareem, who monitored the distribution exercise, noted that the university was committed to providing any facility that will aid teaching and learning.

    “The university is one of the first, if not the very first, to engage in this type of exercise and that is why we are so committed to ensuring that every beneficiary is given what is required,” it quoted AbdulKareem as saying.

  • Unilever to collaborate with Unilorin on entrepreneurship skills

    Unilever to collaborate with Unilorin on entrepreneurship skills

    Unilever Nigeria Plc. on Tuesday in Ilorin pledged its commitment to complementing the efforts of the University of Ilorin authorities at tutoring undergraduates on entrepreneurship skills.

    Unilever’s Leadership Development Specialist, Mr Ademola Odusanya, stated this when he paid a visit to the Vice-Chancellor of the University, Prof. AbdulGaniyu Ambali.

    Odusanya said that its commitment would enable the students to acquire skills they would need for real-time work life through the Company’s “U-Inspire Programme.

    He said the company would remain committed to promoting the ideals of its founding fathers by ensuring that it empowered young people.

    The specialist said the purpose of the visit was to inform the university authorities how Unilever had been contributing its quota to the success of the Nigerian vision.

    While commending the university authorities, Odusanya said the company would “reach out to young minds, catching them young from school, imparting knowledge in them with the support of the school’s management.”

    Responding, Ambali, who was represented by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic), Prof Sidikat Ijaiya, described Unilever as a success story for having “remained afloat in spite of all the ups and downs”.

    The VC expressed appreciation to the company for embarking on the initiative, saying: “any organisation that invests in the development of the youth deserves commendation and we are most grateful to Unilever for bringing this to our campus.”

    Ambali bemoaned the unemployment challenge in the country, pointing out that employers of labour were no longer interested in certificates, but in the skills that graduates could bring to bear on their businesses.

  • V.C commends University of Ghana

    V.C commends University of Ghana

    Prof. AbdulGaniyu Ambali, the Vice-Chancellor (V.C), University of Ilorin (Unilorin), has commended the University of Ghana, Legon Boundary in Accra, for partnering Unilorin in its UG-Pan African Doctoral Academy (UG-PADA) programme.

     

    Ambali gave the commendation on Monday in Ilorin when he received a two-man delegation from the university led by Prof. Kweku Osam.

     

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that UG-PADA focuses its programmes on doctoral candidates at the University of Ghana, other universities in Ghana and in other West-African countries.

     

    It is established to address specific skill gaps and provides opportunities for improving the knowledge of doctoral candidates.

     

    It is also geared toward equipping scholars with methodological skills; scholarship, counseling, mentoring and career development guidance.

     

    The programme is also to avail Doctors of Philosophy (PhD) scholars’ supervisory skills and introduce them to methods of teaching and learning that will enhance their capability to train other future academics.

     

    The V-C said that there had been a long-standing relationship between the two universities which the visit would by the team would further cement.

     

    Ambali said, “It is a welcome development to have our students interacts with students from across the world.’’

     

    He told the team that the university had “a robust postgraduate programme”.

     

    Earlier, the leader of the team, Prof. Kweku Osam, said that it was in Unilorin to encourage doctoral students from there to apply for the UG-PADA programme.

     

    According to him, the accelerated PhD training is funded by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

     

    He said that the courses were opened to PhD candidates from the University of Ghana (UG) as well as other Ghanaian and African Universities.

     

    The team also includes: Mrs Christy Badu, Senior Assistant Registrar, University of Ghana who doubles as the coordinator of the programme.

  • UNILORIN awards scholarship to 246 students

    UNILORIN awards scholarship to 246 students

    The Senate of the University of Ilorin has awarded scholarships to 246 students during the 2014/2015 academic session.

    According to the University Bulletin issued on Wednesday in Ilorin, the gesture was in recognition of the students’ brilliant academic performances at their various levels across all faculties of the University.

    The bulletin stated that the breakdown of the awards was contained in the just published University of Ilorin 2014/2015 Annual Report.

    It stated that the scholarships were awarded to 12 students of the Faculty of Agriculture, 32 students of the Faculty of Arts, 14 from the Faculty of Basic Medical Science and six from the Faculty of Clinical Science.

    It said that 16 were from the Faculty of Communication and Information Sciences, 37 from the Faculty of Education and 36 students from the Faculty of Engineering and Technology.

    Further breakdown showed that one student from the Faculty of Environmental Sciences, 13 students from the Faculty of Law, 16 from the Faculty of Life Sciences, 12 from the Faculty of Management Sciences and six from the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, among others.

    It said that the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. AbdulGaniyu Ambali, noted that the scholarship award was “basically to reward hard work and to serve as morale booster for the recipients while it will further motivate and encourage other students to strive hard to attain that great height.”

    Ambali, however, commended the University scholars and advised other students to attach seriousness to their studies for them to be recipients of the award in the 2015/2016 academic session.

    The VC pointed out that the University of Ilorin “is known for the best’’ and pledged that his leadership would continue to do everything humanly possible not only to sustain the feat and to consolidate on the existing achievements.

  • Herdsmen pose security threat to UNILORIN, says VC

    Herdsmen pose security threat to UNILORIN, says VC

    •UNILORIN ranked 1,842nd in the world

    The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ilorin (UNILORIN), Prof. AbdulGaniyu Ambali, has said encroachment by Fulani herdsmen and their cattle is posing “serious security threat” to the institution.

    He urged the Federal Government to fence the university.

    The professor of veterinary medicine spoke with reporters in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, on the institution’s 30th convocation lecture.

    He said for the first time in history, a Nigerian university was ranked 20th in Africa and 1,842nd in the world.

    The vice chancellor said: “I am happy to restate that a remarkable thing happened to the Nigerian university system this year, courtesy of UNILORIN. For the first time since ranking began, a Nigerian university was ranked among the best 2,000 universities in the world. The latest ranking of international colleges and universities places the university first in Nigeria, 20th in Africa and the 1,842nd in the world.

    “Though we are not satisfied to occupy the position we are on the global stage until we are ranked within the best 200, the achievement of the university will be underscored when it is realised that 11,307 colleges and universities are sampled in the ranking in 200 countries. The United States alone, let alone other advanced countries, has more than 3,000 universities.

    “The modest work being done at the university has made it the darling of applicants in Nigeria; the university was the eighth most preferred in 2011 and fifth most preferred in 2012. Last year, we became the 2nd most preferred university in Nigeria and this year we became the number one choice of applicants with over 105,000 applicants, the second most preferred university having 74,000 applicants.”

    On his administration’s achievements, Ambali said: “We have embarked on 10,000 hectares of oil palm plantation. We all know that the Malaysian economy relies much on oil palm and there is a report that they took the seed from Nigeria a few decades ago.

    “However, our country imports about 500,000 metric tonnes of palm oil annually while Malaysia exported about 24 trillion metric tonnes of palm oil in 2012 to the United States, the European Union, China and India. The export earned the country some 20 billion pound sterling (about N5.314 trillion).”

    The vc put the number of graduating students at 6,328, with 5,438 first degree and 890 higher degree/diploma holders.

    He said: “In the first degree category, 48 made first class; 1,290 second class upper; 2,814 second class lower; 1,067 third class; 84 pass; 18 diplomas and 217 MBBS.”