Tag: UNICAL

Management of University of Calabar (UNICAL) has supplied 698 new mattresses to the hostels. This was done during the maiden visit of the Vice-Chancellor (VC), Prof Zana Akpagu, to the Halls of Residence. The mattresses will replace the old ones, which were infested by bedbugs.

Prof Zana was accompanied to the hostels by the Dean of Students’ Affairs (DSA), Prof Felix Akpan, and other management officials. The VC said his administration would make the school conducive for learning.

The visit by the VC followed a protest held by students last year to draw attention to poor facilities in their hostels. After his inauguration last December, Prof Zana promised to enhance the hostel condition.

The VC said: “I have a passion for the school, because it is my alma mater. The visit to the hostels is an indication of my commitment to make students’ living condition better and create conducive learning environment. We will ensure everything possible to improve on the welfare of the students.”

Prof Zana said plans were on top gear to bring back contractors handling hostel renovation to complete the work. “We are doing everything to get back contractors to site. We are trying to do landscaping; we want to make this place more beautiful. There is a complete plan for beautification of the university, which we want to start by doing some landscaping,” he said.

On the directive asking students to vacate the hostel, the VC said it was to enable the management fumigate the hostel rooms. “We are all aware of the Lassa fever outbreak and that is what we are avoiding by asking students to leave,” he said.

Some students, who spoke with CAMPUSLIFE, hailed the move by the management to improve their welfare.

Urang Zaknor, a student, said: “I am quite impressed by the development happening in the hostel. The Vice Chancellor is demonstrating that he is one of us. He needs to do everything possible to give the university a face-lift. He should also ensure better students-lecturers relationship.”

Usang Ofem, another student, said: “Prof Zana has a good spirit and a better ambition for not just the students but all other members of the university community. I see him taking UNICAL to a greater height. He needs the support of everybody, because he cannot do it alone.”

University of Calabar (UNICAL) students have returned from a two-week break, following their protest over poor facilities. They returned to meet improved facilities, reports EMMANUEL SHEBBS (Graduate School). 

Last month, students of the University of Calabar (UNICAL) took to the streets  to express their grievances over an alleged poor condition of their hostels. The action  tagged “no welfare, no studies”, lasted for six hours as the protesters moved from the hostel area to the university main gate to draw management’s attention to their plight.

Reacting, the Vice-Chancellor, Prof James Epoke, shut down the hostels for two weeks to fix the facilities.

The students returned last Friday  to meet the hostels refurbished. Some decrepit facilities had been removed, and some new facilities added.

Checks by CAMPUSLIFE showed that the bathrooms have been fitted with marbles and showers. The toilet units in each hostel were also renovated. In female hostels, the laundry rooms were covered with granite.

Christiana Effiom, living in Hall 9, said it was the first time she would use a shower in the hostel bathroom. “All these facilities were never used in the past. With water running in the shower and the toilet, students will be saved the stress of carrying buckets around to fetch water,” she said.

Eucharia Johnson, who stays in Hall 8, said the hostel was “terribly bad” before renovation. She said: “I can’t count how many times I visited the school Health Centre to get antibiotics after I got infected with diseases in the hostel toilet. We used to defecate in small buckets and throw into the pit. Anyone, who dared to use the toilets, would have himself to blame. I am happy things are better now.”

The Students Union Government (SUG) President, Ekpo Tete, hailed the management for being “responsive” to students’ plight, saying: “Some of the things we complained about have been fixed.”

While the renovation is still ongoing, Ekpo said students expected the management would hasten the exercise.

Dean of Students’ Affairs, Prof Eyong Eyong, said the management  speedily fixed the hostel facilities, because of the urgency of the problem. He dismissed claims that the management is nonchalant about students’ welfare.

He said: “The management has keen interest in the welfare of students. The renovation work was started before the students’ protest. The demonstration only made the management to increase the pace of work in the hostel.”

When students embarked on the protest, the DSA said the management met with the contractors handling the project to speed up work. He said the management declared two weeks holiday because the renovation could be delayed by academic activities.

A worker in the hostel, who gave her name as Madam Owan, is afraid that the facilities may not be adequate for the large population of students.

She said: “A hostel should not have more than 500 students. But, this is not the case with hostels here.

‘’We have more than 1,000 students in each hostel, with a room taking up to eight or nine students. It is a challenge for us here because these facilities are designed for the limited number of students. So, excessive use of the new facilities may cause quick damage to them.”

Ekpo said hostels’ renovation was one of students’ complaints. He said there were other complaints, such as the controversial development levy and acceptance fee.

Also, the SUG Vice-President, Sandra Chukwura, said reptiles still invade female hostels. She said: “We killed a snake in the hostel the other day and it has been a recurring issue. The bushes around the female hostel must be cleared to avoid tragedy of having reptiles close to the hostel area.”

The union leaders urged the management to attend to other complaints stated by the students to avoid further protest.

While students returned to the hostel, hall administrators said they had come up with strategies to ensure cleanliness and maintenance of the facilities. Mrs Benita Ikpeme, a hostel Administrative Officer,said there are 72 units of toilets and bathroom in each hostel.

She said: “We have devised means to distribute the rooms to each toilet. This will enable students take the responsibility of keeping the toilet clean. When the toilets are left open, strangers can easily go in to misuse them. But now, the toilets have keys that will be handed over to the students in each room.”