Education
Authentic List: RSUST Lecturers Await Management Response
Recently, recalled lec
turers of the Rivers State University of Science and Technology (RSUST) are currently awaiting the response of the management of the university in the feud over an authentic list of the lecturers
In an exclusive interview with The Tide last Friday, chairman of the University’s Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Dr. Payate, Suobere Taderigha, said following their recall after three years of strike, and subsequent reinstatement of their rights and privileges, an authentic list of all such lecturers are yet to be compiled for onward submission to the state government.
Dr Tadaerigha, alleged that a list said to have been sent to the state government by management of the university was fraudulent as it did not contain the genuine names of lecturers who had been on strike as agreed by the lecturers and management of the institution.
He explained that following a meeting of both parties on the 19th of June, 2015, a list of 63 names of lecturers was compiled as those due for payment of outstanding salaries covering the period of the three of the years strike.
However, contrary to the said agreement, ASUU found out that an entirely different list containing 55 names that included names of lecturers who were not on strike and sundry anomalies was sent to the government.
“To our amazement, instead of 63 names it was now 55 names. So, we were short of eight names,” Dr. said, adding that “we also found out that they added extra names of person who were not on strike”.
In addition to this, Puyate stated that the list submitted to the state government was filed with other fraudulent claims which he said was intended to defraud the state government and also soil the image of ASUU in the university.
“We also observed that the figures computed were over-bloated for us as a union. This is a means of defrauding the government, and we as a union cannot partake in such criminal tendency.
“There was also over-bloating of house rent, electricity bills and sanitation (fees),” he said.
The ASUU boss further alleged that management of the university also claim to have paid the salaries of the striking lecturers up to September 2012, while they only paid up to August.
According to him, the aggrieved lecturers have duely compiled these and other anomalies and written to the vice chancellor, Professor Barineme Fakae, hence they await his response.
“As at now, we are still waiting for them (Management) to do the right thing. That list they have sent to government, we cannot accept it because it does not give a true picture of those of us who were on strike.
On how to resolve the feud, Dr. Tadaerigha stated that “the right thing should be done”. This he said implies that representatives of the recalled lectures and those of management would need to dialogue and come up with the authentic list.
Efforts to get the perspective of management through the VC failed but when contacted, the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the university, Mr. Desmond Wosu, blamed the lecturers for taking their grievances to the press.
According to him, the lecturers did not follow due process to resolve the issue internally.
It will be recalled that the latest feud over the authentic list of the lecturers sequel to the May 29, 2015 directive by the Rivers State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike, who in his inaugural speech recalled lecturers after three years of strike and accorded them all their rights and privileges.
Sogbeba Dokubo
Education
Former VC Advocates Drug Test For University Lecturers
Prof. Muhammad AbdulAziz, the immediate past Vice Chancellor of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU), Bauchi state, has advocated drug tests for lecturers to sanitise the university system.
Mr AbdulAziz stated this in a valedictory speech to the Senate of the University at a handing-over ceremony to his successor, Prof. Sani Kunya, the new acting Vice Chancellor of the institution.
While commending the decision by the Federal Ministry of Education to introduce drug tests for students seeking admission to all universities, he said such tests should be extended to lecturers.
According to him, it would further sanitise the university system and promote sanctity and academic excellence.
“We have discussed with the Federal Ministry of Education and they want to introduce to all universities that before any student would be registered in the universities, he or she must undergo drug tests.
“If students should undergo drug tests, I believe that even some of us, the lecturers, need to undergo the same test so that we know our status.
“We also have to volunteer ourselves to have this test done on us because we have to sanitise the university.
“If the students are to be subjected to drug tests to determine their mental health status, nothing is wrong if the lecturers too are subjected to the same test.
That is the only way to check excesses in the university system,” he said.
Mr AbdulAziz said the modest achievements recorded during his tenure were in the areas of infrastructural development, academic content development and community services.
He said the achievements recorded could not have been made possible without the support of all stakeholders in the system.
He appreciated the federal government for the support rendered to the University through the Federal Ministry of Education and its various agencies like the National Universities Commission and the Tertiary Education Trust Fund.
Read Also:Students to undertake drug test before admission UniAbuja
Also speaking, the new acting VC of the university expressed gratitude to the Senate for finding him worthy of the honour and to the federal government for his confirmation.
“I want to assure you that I will justify the confidence reposed in me by not disappointing you all.
Education
Don Seeks 20%Increased Budget Allocation To Education
A Professor of Economics in the Faculty of Social Sciences University of Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Prof Willie J. Okowa has called on government at all levels to increase her Education sectorial budgetary allocation to twenty percent of their annual budget , saying that such efforts will improve the development of education in the country.
Okowa said each government wether local, state or federal governments should devote an increased proportion of her annual budget to education such that in the next five to ten years , so that we can see at least 20 percent of her budget to the education sector.
He made this call while presenting the 42nd convocation lectures at the just concluded Iaue convocation ceremonies held at the university auditorium in port harcourt, recently.
He posisted that the economy has a nexus with sustainable higher education to the effect that a robust economy plays a key role in the sustainability of higher .education , while a sustainable higher education plays a supportive economic growth and development
“On the hand,a failing economy can hardly support a sustainable higher education”.
According to him ,a growing economy easily provides the finances to fund sustainable higher education while a education provides the relevant skills and the manpower needs required to propel economic growth and development,”of course, The Inadequate provision of higher educational facilities will fail to the manpower needs required by the economy to support its growth and development”
“The ability of an economy to adquately find higher education also depends on the rate of the population ,the higher the rate of growth of population, the more the number of the people that require higher education .Hence ,a rapid population growth puts more pressure on the ability of the economy to adquately fund higher education, irrespective of its performance.”
“Population growth , economic growth and the adequate funding of higher education are therefore intricately interlinked.The adequacy of the funds that an economy provides to finance higher education also depends on how well the managers of our education institutions manage such funds.
If people who lack character , integrity and merit are appointed to helms of affairs institutions,then funds can hardly be adequate .on the other hands ,if people of character, integrity and merit are given such appointments ,then the outcome will be much better” he stated.
The erudite scholar opined that Nigerian universities and colleges are also passing through strange times and outlined outdated laboratories , inadequate classrooms, adding that many students involved in drugs and prostitution.
By: Akujobi Amadi
Education
Bauchi Govt Threatens To Revoke Scholarship Of Unserious Students
The Bauchi State government has cautioned that it will cease payment of external exam fees for Senior Secondary Three, SS3 students found skipping classes.
Commissioner for Education, Jamila Dahiru gave the warning in Bauchi during her school resumption inspection and monitoring visits to some schools on Wednesday.
The Tide’s source recalls that Governor Bala Mohammed earlier allocated N396.9 million for the 2023/2024 external exams of 14,170 students in public schools.
The external examinations paid for included the West African Examination Council, WAEC, the National Examination Council l, NECO, National Board for Arabic and Islamic Studies (NBAIS) and the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB.
However, the Commissioner, who was furious with the low level of attendance of especially the SS3 students in some schools, recounted how she met less than 20 percent of the SS3 students who were around when she visited a particular school.
She stressed the need for students to return to class and prepare diligently, threatening to revoke scholarships for ‘unserious ones.’
Her words: “We just realised that most of these students, after being taught from JSS1 to SS3 and with Gov. Bala Mohammed paying for their external exams, and as soon as they were done with their mock exams, they left school and won’t return until the first day of their external exams.
“It is sad to acknowledge that we are not responsible as parents because I want to believe that they have parents who are seeing them attending schools simply because they are getting ready to just write their external examinations.
“We want to make them come back to class, we want to emphasize that we are investing in the right people because it is just telling us that it is the government that bothers about their education while they don’t care and probably their parents that are allowing them to stay at home also do not care.
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