The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Students

  • Police foil attack on students in Kebbi State

    The Kebbi Police Command said on Monday that it had foiled an attempt by unknown gunmen to attack the Kebbi State College of Basic and Advanced Studies in Yauri, headquarters of Yauri Local Government Area of the state.

    The Commissioner of Police, Mr Benjamin Onwuka, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Birnin Kebbi that the incident occurred in the early hours of Saturday.

    Onwuka, however, dismissed insinuations that the attackers were insurgents.

    He stated that normalcy had been restored in the institution as both the students and residents of the area had resumed their normal daily activities.

    The police commissioner called on residents of the area to remain law abiding and to avoid spreading rumours.

    Onwuka, however, appealed to the public to continue to assist the police with relevant information that would assist security agencies to contain crime in the state.

    Meanwhile, a student of the college, who pleaded anonymity, told NAN that the gunmen gained entry into the school’s premises at about 2 a.m. on Saturday.

  • FUT expels 5 students over exam malpractice

    The authorities of the Federal University of Technology (FUT), Minna, had expelled five students of the institution over alleged examination malpractice.

    This is contained in a statement signed by the university’s Registrar, Mrs. Victoria Kolo, in Minna on Monday.

    The statement stated that the action would serve as deterrent to others nursing similar ideas.

    They are: Ishola Kolawole, Department of Chemical Engineering; Sani Francis, Agriculture and Bio Resources Engineering; Wole Agbaje, Electrical/Computer Engineering; Akpan Augustus, Chemical Engineering and Michael Idahosa, Library and Information Technology.

    It called on students to desist from acts capable of smearing their names, and put in positive effort that would lead them to success.

  • UI, Asian Varsity exchange students

    UI, Asian Varsity exchange students

    The University of Ibadan’s Centre for Sustainable Development (CESDEV) has partnered with some Asian universities on a student exchange programme.

    The Director of UI’s CESDEV, Prof Labode Popoola, made this known at a briefing in Bodija, Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

    He said Nigeria, and indeed Africa’s thirst for real development, was hinged on a programme that breaks disciplinary and continental boundaries the same manner the centre was doing with the global field exercise, which started in Japan.

    The programme, he said, was aimed at creating “complete” leaders that can apply diverse methods to developmental and governmental issues.

    Popoola said: “Asia may be a continent of developed countries or a few emerging economies but, in truth, there are some things that we lost in the course of all that development. Coming to Nigeria, I saw those things and I wished we had it.

    “It’s important for students to employ multi-disciplinary approach to development studies. If we do that, we’ll begin to see sustainable development. That is the beauty of the programmes we have in CESDEV.

    “These students, in the past 11 days, have been exploring multi-disciplinary subjects that affect development. They’ve been dealing with environmental protection, agriculture, food security issues and many more.”

    Popoola said prior to the students of the University of Tokyo visit to Nigeria, UI students had, between November and December, last year, spent more than two weeks in Japan, learning and sharing ideas with their counterparts.

    “Our students were in the University of Tokyo between November and December, last year, learning and sharing with students in Tokyo. Now, students from that university are here too to learn and share. That is the global nature and concept of development studies,” he said.

    Popoola described lack of electricity, poor awareness of the programme’s relevance, as well as disinterest from states in sponsoring students, as part of challenges confronting the programme.

    CESDEV is a postgraduate programme of UI, which according to the director, offers postgraduate diplomas, professional and academic masters as well as PhDs’.

    Prof. Masafumi Nagao, who led the University of Tokyo students to Nigeria, said the need to learn and share experience worldwide necessitated the deal.

    Nagao said: “Africa and Asia have a lot in common, yet each continent knows very little about each other. The idea is for students from both continents to collaborate to learn from one another’s point of view and build areas of social relevance.”

    According to him, the programme is similar to programmes run at the University of Tokyo, but he wished there was more money available to execute more of such trips to Nigeria and Africa.

    A 23-year-old undergraduate of the University of Tokyo, Tina Yamada said in the midst of Japan’s technological advancement, spectacular transport system and social organisation, the country still needs to borrow a leaf from the Third World.

    Her Nigerian counterpart, Tolu Adegbite, said: “I was in Tokyo, Japan in December for the exchange programme. In terms of development, Japan has more advanced technology and better transport system unlike Nigeria. But here, their is flexibility unlike Japan where life is rigid and more individualistic. But one similarity is that the two countries have the same education culture where people believe that young people can only excel and lead the future if they acquire education.”

     

  • A new beginning

    A new beginning

    After a three-year ban, students’ unionism  has returned to the Ekiti State University (EKSU), with the  election of its  leaders. TUNJI AWE (300-Level Political Science) reports.

    We are happy that our union is back,” Daniel Akande, a 400-Level Industrial Chemistry student, said after results of Students’ Union Government (SUG) were announced last week.

    Many students of the Ekiti State University (EKSU), who participated in the exercise for the return of the SUG after a three-years proscription, felt the same way too.

    When Prof Dipo Aina, the Vice-Chancellor (VC), took over the school’s administration, he promised to deproscribe the union, which was banned following a violent protest.

    But months after, students became agitated and held campaigns to call on the management to lift the ban.

    The campaign began with graffiti on open surfaces, including walls, building floors and roads. The students also went on house-to-house campaigns to galvanise themselves in making the demand.

    The management responded by inaugurating a Transition Committee led by Adeoye Aribasoye, a Law student. The committee was charged with conducting election during the 2012/2013 academic session. Several months after its inauguration, the committee could not hold the election.

    When the school resumed for another session, the VC made another promise.

    He made good his promise by swearing in the electoral committee, comprising all faculty presidents and two members from each faculty.

    While the election was drawing close, students protested the “No school fees, no lecture” decision of the management. Although, the two-day protest was peaceful, it forced the management to shut down school for weeks.

    But before the campus could re-open, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) started its almost six-month strike, which was called off last December. On resumption on January 5, the university management fixed February 14 for the long-awaited union election, which the students described as “lovers’ election”.

    With the campus deep in electioneering, the management, on February 11, shifted the election to February 20 at a Students’ Union Stakeholders Forum held at the university’s Odua Auditorium.

    The Dean of Students’ Affair (DSA), Prof Issac Adanlawo, who attended the forum with the secretary of the electoral committee, Dr Awe and Chief Security Officer of school, Captain Augustine Ajayi (rtd), said the management postponed the exercise to allow for submission of nomination forms from all the candidates.

    With the change in election date, campaign and election programmes changed. All the candidates underwent screening three days before the new date following which the manifesto day was held.

    Babajide Kolawole, also known as (a.k.a) Jidekol, a 400-Level Economics student, who became popular among the students, for having led several peaceful protests in the past, was barred from contesting a few hours before the election. The students protested, with some of them threatening to boycott the exercise.

    “The disqualification of Jidekol and other vibrant candidates is a slap on our face,” Fatima Akadiri an Education student, said, adding: “We won’t allow this injustice to go just like that.”

    One of the officials, who conducted the screening, told CAMPUSLIFE on condition of anonymity: “Babajide and others were disqualified from contesting not because of the protest they led against the school. They faced a disciplinary panel, which asked them to write apology letters, but they refused to do so. This is why they were disqualified.”

    Sekoni Damilola, a 400-Level Microbiology and one of the students, who were pardoned by the panel, said the affected students wrote the letter the same day the panel served them its verdict, saying: “We became worried when we learnt that the letters were yet to be received by the management.”

    The disqualification left the contest open to Adebayo Adebami, a student of Faculty of Science, and Ibitola Babatope, from the Faculty of Agriculture.

    The election started at 10am with a low turnout. The exercise took place in all faculties, as against previous elections, which were held at a centre. Prof Adanlawo explained the new development, which, he said, was to reduce students’ concentration on one center.

    The Disqualified Babajide and his supporters were seen moving from one hostel to another, urging students to come out and vote.

    Babajide’s efforts paid off. By noon, the students besieged the campus voters’ queues at each faculty became elongated. Students of Faculty of Education mobilised their colleagues to participate in the exercise because three students of their faculty contested for the posts of Vice-President, General Secretary and Treasurer.

    As the exercise was going on, the VC moved round the faculties. Addressing the students at the Faculty of Arts, Prof Aina said: “The world would know that we are breeding world class leaders here and I am sure you have told the world that you are civilised through your peaceful conduct.”

    The exercise ended at 3pm. Ibitola, a student of the Faculty of Agriculture, was declared the union president by 1,047 votes against his opponent, who polled 1,014 votes. After the announcement, the students jubilated.

    Ibitola, in his address, promised not to let them down. Rasheed Bello, a 200-Level Guidance and Counselling student, said the announcement ended months of uncertainties about the election.

  • ‘We’ll sanitise students’ unionism’

    ‘We’ll sanitise students’ unionism’

    Kenneth Okeke is the chairman of the Joint Campus Committee, an arm of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Anambra State chapter. Kenneth, who hails from Uli in Ihiala Local Government Area of the state, is an Applied Microbiology and Brewing student at the Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK) in Awka. He shares his thoughts on students’ unionism with MMADUKA ODOGWU (UNIZIK).

    That have you done to reconcile the National Union of Anambra State Students (NUAS) and Anambra State Students Association (ANSSA) locked in a battle over the apex Anambra State students body?

    Let me say peace is always the by-product of dialogue. In politics, once the conflicting interests are resolved, peace will be automatically restored. The rivalry between the NUAS and ANSSA is unfortunate. As a leader of all students in Anambra State, it becomes my responsibility to make sure peace reigns within the unions of students. I can assure you that the issues would be resolved through dialogue. Even as I speak, we have already taken positive measures to ensure reconciliation. We are working to propagate peace in Anambra State because it is only when there is peace that we can achieve development.

    There are challenges being faced by students in the state, particularly high cost of accommodation and insecurity. What is your body doing to tackle these problems?

    We are aware of the accommodation challenge in schools in Anambra. However, a committee has been set up to look into it and recommend measures to address it. It is not going to be easy, but we have faith that the committee would deliver on the assignment. We want to assure students that the challenge will be a thing of the past. On security, we are in partnership with security agencies in the state. We intend to provide them with information regularly about the security situation on campus and off-campus. We have also partnered with the security personnel on campuses to secure the lives and properties of students.

    It is believed that NANS and other students’ unions are tools in the hands of politicians, who use them for political violence. What is your view on this?

    Well, I share this belief. It will be fallacious to say that all lawyers are liars because in the class of lawyers, there must be at least one person who is not a liar. It will also be wrong to say that all politicians are greedy, because in the class of politicians, there must be at least one person who is not. It may be true that some of our comrades are being used by politicians but there are still many of us who still propagate the values of students’ unionism and work hard to ensure that students have one voice. I won’t say that all is well with students’ unionism in the country but the students’ body is sick with a curable disease. With efforts of people like you, we can rebuild our unions and make them free of influence of politicians. We want to return unionism to students.

    What should students expect from you in terms of programmes?

    We have several programmes for students. But we are organising a town hall meeting where students in Anambra will come together to discuss issues affecting them. We are inviting speakers from far and near to talk to us on the dangers associated with some of the vices we exhibit, such as examination malpractices, indecent dressing, cultism, kidnapping, armed robbery and hooliganism. After this seminar, we also have a lot of welfare programmes for students.

  • Unilag swears in new students’ leaders

    Unilag swears in new students’ leaders

    The Vice-Chancellor of University of Lagos, Prof. Rahamon Ade Bello has expressed the management’s willingness to lift the ban on students’unionism soon.

    He made this known at the swearing-in of students’ representatives for the 2013/2014 session, who were elected from faculty associations, departmental associations and halls of residence.

    He said: “The university management is fully committed to the realisation of an ideal students’ unionism in the nearest future. We are poised to work with you to finalise the model. The way and manner you the present students’ leaders conduct and organise your affairs will to a large extent, also pave the way for this.”

    Rahamon, who was represented by his Deputy (Management Services), Prof Duro Oni, congratulated the students, urging them to be diligent, responsible and selfless in the discharge of their duties.

    “I used this medium to congratulate you on your election as the president and executives of your respective faculty students’ associations. You have to put yourself forward to serve colleagues, and you had been popularly excited.

    “Please do serve diligently and with utmost sense of responsibility. The general interest of the students should be your priority. By your election into these executive positions, you are now the link between the students and the management. It is expected that you maintain decorum in all your dealings,” he said.

    Earlier, the Dean of Students’ Affairs, Prof Olukayode Amund, urged the students to be exemplary, accountable and feel free to approach the DSA Unit for complaints.

    Amund, who said he looked forward to working with the students’ leaders, also advised them to follow the right channel of communication when lodging their complaints.

    He said: “As leaders, you are enjoined to be exemplary in your disposition and carry your fellow students along due to the confidence they reposed in you to have elected you as leaders. There must be financial accountability and probity. Please feel free to approach the Dean of Students’ Affairs Division on any matter of our collective interest for dialogue so that together, we can take the university to the Promised Land”.

    Listing some of the achievements in the last one year, the out-going chairman, Council of Faculty Presidents, Nelson Emmanuel, said the council was able to organise a peaceful protest to control and regulate prices of commodities on the campus, reduce fares and ensure financial accountability in the students’ associations, among others.

    “If we want SUG, we have to be level-headed; we should not make unguarded statements and ensure that we repose confidence in the school authorities,” he advised.

    President, Faculty of Arts Students Association (FASA) Mr. Fatunbi Olawale Jimmy sought cooperation from members.

    “I feel elated because it is a privilege to be called upon to serve in this association, and at the same time it is challenging because you will not want to fail those who have confidence in you.

    “I expect cooperation and support from students, because one cannot become a leader until your followers are ready to be led. I therefore solicit for their support and cooperation towards the success of this administration,” he said.

     

  • A sweet goodbye

    A sweet goodbye

    The National Association of Imo, and Ebonyi States’ Students (NAIAESS) has organised a send-off party for members.  The event was held at the Urban and Regional Planning Department.

    In his address, Chairman on the occasion Prof C.I. Owuama congratulated the graduating students for successfully concluding their studies. He advised them to be submissive and humble.

    He stressed the need for hard work, saying it was important for the realisation of their dreams.

    “We Ibos are known for our hard work, and nothing pays like hard work. There is dignity in labour,” he said.

    The highlight of the occasion was the presentation of certificates to the graduating students, cultural dance, plucking of the farewell fruit and presentation of awards to deserving members of the association.

    Those given awards included Dr Bamanga Ribadu,  Joseph Tivary and Uche Kalu, who are lecturers in the Department of Information Technology and Industrial Design.

    Others were Ekwuzie Osondu Victor, Bappare Mohammed, Chidebere Offordieze, Valentine Uzoma and Dr Jival Panama, who was posthumously honoured.

    Speaking on behalf of the recipients, Dr Ribadu thanked the organisers  for finding them worthy of the awards, promising to support the association.

    Speaking to CAMPUSLIFE, Chairman of the organising committee Ekwuzie thanked God for the success of the event, in spite of financial difficulties.  He called on members to strive for academic excellence and to keep the association united.

  • Varsity students matriculate

    No fewer than 3,493 fresh students of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, have matriculated in the 2013/2014 academic session.

    The matriculation was presided over by the institution’s Vice-Chancellor, Prof Olusola Oyewole.

    Speaking on the occasion, Oyewole said the number of applicants, who sat for the Post-Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (Post-UTME) in the university was 25,467, out of which 3,493 were offered provisional admission.

    He admonished the students to consider themselves fortunate to have secured admission into the university, considering the high number of prospective students, who had applied based on the university’s remarkable progress and development in all ramifications.

    Oyewole however, warned that the university has zero tolerance for academic indiscipline,disrespect for constituted authorities, rascality, irresponsible unionism, cultism, laziness, truancy and vandalism, among others.

     

  • Students kill trapped antelope for meal

    Students kill trapped antelope for meal

    For some students of Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Osun State, relishing the tasty meat of Antelope, a rare delicacy popularly called Eran Igbe in Yoruba, was an experience they would never forget in a long while. Luck, as they seemed to believe, made the animal to stray into their hall of residence three days after the university authority asked them to vacate the halls to accommodate participating universities that came for just concluded 24th Nigeria University Games (NUGA), hosted by the university to mark the 50th anniversary of the school.

    Majority of the students had vacated their rooms for the visitors, but a few left in the Awolowo Hall hunted the animal that was trapped at the Self-Help Block while moving towards Block 5 of the hostel and killed it.

    Mutiu Oyatoye, a 400-Level Language Arts student, said the animal was sighted by a student around Self-Help Block moving towards Block 5 of the hostel. The student quickly alerted his colleagues by shouting: “Won ti de o”, meaning “they have come”.

    On hearing this, students trooped out to chase the animal until it was caught. However, there were divergent suggestions on what to do with the animal. Some suggested that it should be taken to the University Zoological Garden, while others said it should be killed for meal.

    Yusuf Basit, a 300-Level Linguistics and African Languages student, told CAMPUSLIFE that he ran to the scene when he heard some noise from Awolowo Hall. “When I got there, I saw an antelope with a rope tied around its neck,” he said.

    The hostel’s porters were surprised at the sight of the animal, wondering how it could have made its way into the hall of residence.

    The animal was later slaughtered and shared among students.

     

  • Final year students hold dinner

    The University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH) chapter of the Christian Medical and Dental Association Students (CMDAS) has held a dinner for its graduating members.

    The programme, tagged: “The Light” was held last Saturday at the Multipurpose Hall of the All Saints Chapel on the institution’s Ugbowo Campus.

    Dr Stanley Okugbo of the Department of Surgery, UBTH, charged them not to allow the love for money override the ethics of the medical profession. He highlighted the challenges of medical practice in Nigeria and encouraged them to take up the responsibility of redeeming the nation’s health sector.

    “As Christian doctors and dentist, you are expected to make impact because your life is that of purpose. You would be privileged to meet more people who wou;d come to the hospital for consultation than a typical religious leader. When patients come, don’t fail to attend to them with empathy. See patients as real human being and not mere cases or guinea pigs,” he said.

    He added that men like the late Nelson Mandela were those who contributed to their community. He charged them to be ambassadors of God wherever they aspire to practice, stating that their training in medical school was well grounded to meet the 21st Century challenges of the profession.

    Highpoint of the dinner was the presentation of gifts to all the graduating students and leaders of the association.

    A representative of the doctor’s arm of the association later presented induction certificates to formally induct the students. He charged them not to shy away from caring for their patients. This was followed by games and thanksgiving service.

    Godspower Ogbebor of the School of Medicine said he was grateful to God for sustaining him. He thanked the association for their support and encouraged the younger colleagues to be studious and cling to God.

    In attendance were doctors from the School of Medicine, School of Dentistry, executives of the association and members of the University of Benin Medical Students Association (UBEMSA).