Pascal Arogorn Ibe
DESPITE ASUU’s lingering strike,t he Vice-Chancellor (VC) of the Ekiti State University (EKSU) Ado-Ekiti, Professor Eddy Olanipekun, has revealed that students of the institution are owing school fees amounting to N2 billion and has appealed to parents to pay up for the institution to gain financial strength and execute beneficial projects on campus.
The VC equally said that the university would on Thursday confer various degree titles on 11,394 graduands of the university for the 2017/2018 and 2018/2019 academic sessions, which will be held virtually.
Olanipekun who spoke in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital on Monday ahead of the 24th convocation ceremony of the university, said the ceremony would also feature the investiture of the 14th Emir of Kano, Muhammad Sanusi II as the university’s chancellor by the visitor to the university and Ekiti State Governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi.
Expressing regret that the Covid-19 pandemic and high debt owed by the students have caused a slump in the university’s financial stand, Olanipekun said, “Our students owe N2 billion being outstanding tuition fee yet to be paid into the university’s coffers.
“As part of the ways to recover the debt, the university is going to generate institutional e-mails to all students where we can interface. But if you owe, there is no way you can interface with lecturers. We are using this as online and physical teaching methodologies. You can’t interact with your lecturers or supervisors either for lecture or seminar as a debtor.
“We are appealing to parents to please pay for their children to help our financial situation.”
The VC disclosed that graduands will be conferred with degrees ranging from diploma, Bachelor degrees, Masters and PhD at the ceremonies.
Giving the breakdown of the graduands, the VC stated that; “233 will be conferred with diplomas, 10,509 with bachelor degrees, 97 will bag post-graduate diploma, 408 with Masters and 147 with PhD degrees.”
He disclosed that under his leadership, the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria had granted full accreditation for the running of medicine and surgery by the university.
Reeling out other achievements of his administration, Olanipekun said the university has built 6,000-capacity hostel, 250-capacity lecture theatres, renovated pre-degree building, and introduce executive post-graduate studies to encourage
He said in appreciation of the superlative qualities of the staff of the university, 13 staff had been given career and government appointments for them to be able to contribute to national growth and development at the state and national levels.
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