-
University graduates 16,446 students at 29th convocation ceremony
From Priscilla Ediare, Ado-Ekiti
The Vice-Chancellor of Ekiti State University (EKSU), Ado-Ekiti, Prof Joseph Ayodele, has said that despite the achievements his administration has recorded, the university still needs more funds to fuel the wheels of transformation in the institution.
The VC, who hailed the state governor, Biodun Oyebanji, the Visitor to the university, for his unalloyed support and for increasing the institution’s monthly subvention from N210 million to N410 million, however, said that the institution is still confronted with the challenge of paucity of funds. He appealed to the state government to further increase the subvention and to other well-meaning Nigerians to support EKSU so it can witness more development and growth, produce quality graduates, and meet other needs.
Prof Ayodele, who came on board seven months ago as the ninth substantive Vice-Chancellor of the university, made this known on Monday at a press conference heralding the 29th combined convocation ceremony of the institution.
According to him, this year’s convocation ceremony is unique, being the first he will attend as the substantive VC of the university. He disclosed that at the grand finale of the week-long ceremony, scheduled for Saturday, March 29, a total of 16,446 graduates of the university for the 2022/2023 and 2023/2024 academic sessions will be conferred with Bachelor’s Degrees and Higher Degrees.
Also, the university will confer honorary doctorate degrees on three eminent personalities for their numerous contributions to the development of society. They include the Leader of the Senate, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele; the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, Dr Zacch Adedeji; and the Chairman of the Board of the Bank of Industry, Dr Mansur Muhtar.
The VC said, “I appreciate the governor of Ekiti State, Biodun Oyebanji, the Visitor to the university. He has been very supportive. He has increased our monthly subvention. Increasing our monthly subvention from N260 million to N410 million has actually solved some of our problems. And recently, he paid the two outstanding subventions of August and September 2018. We were able to use that to defray our outstanding debts, and we have been very prudent in the management of our resources.
“The major challenge we have is funding. We need more money. We want people to come around and help us. We still have a lot of things to do. We need structures; the Faculty of Pharmacy needs to be built. We need a new Faculty of Law complex, we need an e-Library complex, we need a Department of Medical Laboratory Science. New programmes that are coming in need new structures. There are some allowances we still need to pay, and we are still waiting for funds.
“We need additional subvention. Our wage bill, with the implementation of the new minimum wage, is N820 million, and the government subvention is N410 million. You can do the arithmetic. You know how much we still source every month.
“I know our governor is a lover of progress, so committed to this university as an alumnus himself, and he is an apostle of shared prosperity. He has been doing his best to assist this university, and I know he is still going to do more. He will do more because he loves this university. He loves progress. We still want to plead that, within the capacity of the government, if our subvention can be increased, we will be able to do more. It is going to be a motivation for us to even do more to enhance the human capacity development of this government. So, we will be able to supply quality, high-level manpower to actually drive the developmental projects of this state and the country at large. So, we need an upward review of the subvention, and we are going to make effective use of whatever is given to us.”
The VC, who emphasised that his administration prioritises the welfare of staff and students, however, said that the university under his leadership would not condone any form of indiscipline or misconduct.
“One of my missions is that when you make somebody happy by paying his salaries and dues promptly, he has no excuse not to work. And a hungry man is an angry man. We have made the welfare of our staff a priority. Welfare first, salaries first, and other things will follow.
“The university under my leadership has raised the bar of discipline for staff and students to an admirable level. Our administration detests all forms of malfeasance, and those involved in any form of indiscipline have been appropriately dealt with in accordance with the rules and regulations of the university.
“Decisions related to staff discipline within the last seven months of my leadership, after following due process, range from warnings and termination of appointments to suspension and dismissal.”
Highlighting his achievements, Prof Ayodele said, “92 academic programmes of the university received 83.5 per cent full accreditation status. EKSU was ranked by Times Higher Education as Nigeria’s best state university. Transformation and revitalisation of the university’s part-time programmes to meet the demands of the time, coupled with the introduction of seven new undergraduate programmes, have been achieved. The university is in partnership with top-rated universities in the United Kingdom. Staff promotion and discipline, staff and students’ welfare, and a boost in infrastructural development have been given priority, alongside encouragement of research, among other achievements.”
Giving a breakdown of the graduates to be awarded degrees, he said that in the Bachelor’s Degree category, 200 would receive First Class, 5,406 would obtain Second Class (Upper Division), 9,076 would bag Second Class (Lower Division), 1,295 would graduate with Third Class, and 4 with Pass, while in the Higher Degrees category, there would be 162 PhD Degrees, 242 Master’s Degrees, and 61 Postgraduate Diplomas.
Prof Ayodele expressed gratitude to the Chancellor of the university, Dr Tunji Olowolafe, for his tremendous support for the institution. He also thanked the Chairman of the Governing Council of the university, Prof Akin Oyebode, for his effective leadership.