Oko Poly not at Loggerheads with Union, Says PRO

The Public Relations Officer of the Federal Polytechnic, Oko, Anambra State, Mr. Obini Onuchukwu, has denied claims that the management of the institution is at loggerheads with the unions on campus, describing the management as labourfriendly.

Onuchukwu, who was reacting to allegations by the institution’s chapter of the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnic (ASUP) published in Fides Newspaper, expressed dismay at the issue raised in the publication.

He said the administrative highhandedness and watering of education standard alleged by the union was completely baseless, adding that the Rector, Professor Godwin Onu is the best rector the polytechnic has produced since inception, especially in terms of transforming the dilapidated state of infrastructure and restoring of standard of education in the institution.

“The rector has introduced many novel courses in line with the directive of the education ministry to increase access, for example Aviation Technology. Over N250 million construction work of that department is currently going on at Atani Campus. Mechatronics, that is the combination of electrical and mechanical engineering; Nano Technology, Forensic Science, Railway Maintenance and Marine Science, all these and many more are already awaiting resource inspection by the regulatory body, National Board for Technical Education (NBTE).

“Through close monitoring, the rector has ensured that lecturers deliver lectures in record time and in accordance with the syllables. The rector acquired scientific teaching aides for the institution. Over 200 of our staff are scattered across the world to further their education, majority at PhD level, with pay.

“All the unions on campus have received countless times, monies from the administration to hold and attend conferences because the rector believes in training and retraining of manpower. With an ultra-modern medical centre built by this administration, staff and students are entitled to professional health care at a subsidised rate,” he said.

The polytechnic’s spokesman the rector has put in place an enabling environment for teaching and learning, adding that the aesthetic environment he created has distinguished him from the past leadership of the polytechnic, and has digitalised the administration of the institution.

Onuchukwu added that the rector has set up over 20 high rise structures and cleared backlogs of staff salary, promotion, conversion and upgrading of staff and ensures a regular meeting with all categories of staff to ascertain progress of his ideas.

“Today, Oko Poly is about the highest sort after in the JAMB, recording over 80 per cent increase in its choice for admission. Request for our graduates in the labour market has been on the increase and I am delighted to say that just few days ago, three of our students made the NYSC presidential service award in Abuja. Our institution is affiliated to so many reputable institutions of higher learning at home and overseas in the area of research. For example, Sharda University, Greater Noida India, Galilee Institution Israel, among others.”

He said the current administration has also ensured high level of financial discipline, this he said explains why it has come this far. “Standard has been our watchword. It is also on record that we have highly respected and experienced members in the governing council... We have capable hands. So I wonder the source of the allegation if not from the detractors who can never see anything good in the administration and probably trying to give a dog a bad name in other to hang it.”

He disclosed that the contentious issue of the computer-based test (CBT) was approved by the academic board of the polytechnic and rectified by the governing council and not the rector’s personal agenda as alleged by the union.

“Today, the world is digitalised. CBTE has remained the best. The system which is 30 per cent practical and 70 per cent objectives will compel students to read from cover to cover because you cannot predict where questions will be set. Again, for a lecturer to submit one hundred questions in his course, he must have made out time to exhaust the syllable.”

“One good thing about the system is that the questions are joggled so students must work had to pass. It has also reduced contact with lecturers, in other words the student’s future are in their hands. It saves the institution the cost of producing answer scripts, question papers. No more missing scripts with the CBTE and computation of results is fast. CBTE has created room for the growth of computer literacy among staff and students of the polytechnic.”

Onuchukwu also refuted the allegation that the rector was in a subtle plan to relocate some of the departments to his Ezira home town, describing the allegation as false, malicious and misleading.

He stressed that it is mpossible for the rector or any other person to succeed in such plan without legislation from the National Assembly as the institution was established through an Act of the National Assembly.