Posted by The Port Harcourt Telegraph on
Imo State University, Owerri set up with tax payers' money some years ago, has turned out to be the private property of one man at the helm of affairs, Professor. Anthony Anwukah.
Imo State University, Owerri set up with tax payers' money some years ago, has turned out to be the private property of one man at the helm of affairs, Professor. Anthony Anwukah.
When Anwukah came on board a few years ago, he gave the impression that he was the Messiah sent down by God Almighty to cleanse the sacrilege loosed upon the land by his predecessors. As minutes turned into hours, hours to days, days to weeks, weeks to months and months to years, the chicken's romp became exposed and his true personality became known.
It is now crystal clear that Professor Anwukah whose tenure as Vice Chancellor expires in August 2005 has joined the nouveau riche. This he achieved through the sharp practices he has soiled his hands with in the citadel of learning.
Investigations carried out have shown that the Vice Chancellor makes millions of naira every year out of the pockets of thousands of poor children that seek supplementary admissions from the school, in the name of money needed to process their forms without issuing receipts to them.
Each prospective student pays N1, 000.00 besides the N5, 000.00 meant for the purchase of forms. One of the prospective students who never knew that an extra N1, 000.00 was to be collected found herself in a fix as she could not raise that money. One funny thing is that all the principal officers in the institution ranging from the Registrar to the Bursar and to the Deputy Vice Chancellors could not dismiss or uphold the allegation when the Telegraph called, but directed the case to the Vice Chancellor who was never seen to address the situation.
Another serious shoddy deal is that the Vice Chancellor, irrespective of the highly respected Public Relations Officer the institution boasts of has refused to make adequate use of him. This reason has made it difficult for the school to relate very well with media men working in the state and beyond.
Professor Anwukah who clearly has a strong hatred for media men does the school's adverts by himself, thereby making the PRO redundant. Unlike what is obtained in other higher institutions of learning. Even the school calendar, which is supposed to be part of the job of PR Department is produced by the Bursar who is supposed to take care of monetary affairs. A disorderly situation!
The Vice Chancellor who has continuously defied an order from the Imo State House of Assembly to start admitting new students with National Examinations Council (NECO) Certificates to help sustain Imo people's craze for Higher Education is said to have struck a deal with the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) Board, so that NECO will not have a safe landing in the institution regarded as one of the best state universities in the country. And an undisclosed amount is attached to that deal. More surprising, perhaps, is that his daughter gained admission into a sister university through NECO..
Several attempts made to get the Vice Chancellor who is now regarded as a "maximum ruler" in the institution to comment on the issues raised above, proved abortive as he was on some occasions said to have traveled out and some others was indisposed to speak with the Press or delegate somebody to speak on his behalf. Alternatively, an interactive session with the Press, a novel idea which might not see the light of the day due to the VC's sour relationship with his PRO was suggested.