· HOD takes over from Predecessor in beer parlour, cites insecurity
-Not true, we have accreditation in some courses-Management
The woes of staff of Imo State Polytechnic has continued unabated following the decision of thee state government to relocate the school to his community, Omuma in Oru East local government area and his refusal to pay over thirty percent of the workers who are already resigning their appointments.
An insider source who spoke to this reporter on condition of anonymity said the dwindling fortune of the institution started during Rev Fr Wence Madu’s tenure as Rector of the institution who with held the check off dues of the institution’s academic staff. As a result of this, the lecturers protested,prompting the National Board for Technical Education,NBTE to stop the already scheduled accreditation visit to the school.Imopoly had last had its accreditation of courses in 2015.From record, all the courses were due for accreditation in 2020.
Our source hinted that since 2015, there has not been routine accreditation of any department in the institution, a situation that has further compounded the already complex situation.
The source also disclosed that when former governor Emeka Ihedioha came on board, he was at the verge of mobilizing funds for the commencement of the accreditation of the departments during former Rector, Dr P.U. Njoku’s tenure. But the emergence of the Hope Uzodinma administration truncated it and literally brought the institution to square one.
As if that is not enough, the school has already lost the services of many experienced and resourceful lecturers who have resigned their appointments and joined other institutions to avoid the recurring decimal of pitiable woes which seems to have become the fate of staff of the institution.
For instance, in the Mass Communication department alone, Dr Chibuzo Nwoga has left the school for Alex Ekwueme Federal University Ndufu Alike (AE-FUNAI) in Ebonyi State, while Dr Walter Duru had also left for Madonna University, Elele in Rivers State. Others are also planning to leave in droves soonest.”
The source disclosed that the vindictiveness of the former Rector of the institution(namewitheld) who is alleged to be administering the school in proxy, his immediate successor Dr P.U Njoku also left for Madonna University where he is now an Associate professor.
This has further worsened the situation at the school which presently lacks manpower, thereby making the students stranded.
On the other hand, the students who had already relocated to the Omuma campus are not finding things easy as they hardly sleep with their two eyes closed because of the high level of insecurity in the area.
Hence some of the distraught parents have secured admission for some of them in other schools.
It was also gathered that in no distant time the NBTE will formally write the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) to delist the polytechnic from their portal.
There are also reports that because of the prevailing insecurity at the Orlu Campus of the Polytechnic, the outgoing Head of the Department of Mass Communication,Dr Osita Nwankwo handed over to her successor,Mrs Uloma Okolie, wife of the former Imo state commissioner for local government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Jerry Okolie in one of the beer parlours in Owerri over the weekend.
When contacted on phone,the Public Relations Officer of the school, Prince Darlington Oparaocha said not all the departments lost accreditation.He assured that he will furnish this reporter more information about how many of the departments that have full accreditation.
