Education
University Of Calabar Clears Air On Recent Accreditation Saga
The management of University of Calabar has cleared the air on recent media reports making the rounds that some students of the institution have been asked to enroll for fresh programmes in other institutions after the National Universities Commission (NUC) faulted some departments in the University for commencing new degree programmes without obtaining due clearance from the Commission.
EKO HOT BLOG reported earlier that some students of the institution took to micro-blogging platform, Twitter, to call out the immediate past Vice Chancellor of the University, Professor Zana Itiunbe Akpagu, for failing to secure accreditation for the affected departments before admitting students.
In a related development, SaharaReporters had on Tuesday, April 13, 2021, published a report titled “Anger, Frustration as University of Calabar Vice-Chancellor asks Final year Students to Return to 200Level,” alleging that the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Florence Banku Obi, Fnaec, mnae, JP, unilaterally ordered the downgrading of 400 Level students in some programmes to 200 Level.
Reacting to the recent media reports, the University, in a statement signed by its registrar, Gabriel Egbe, regretted the lopsidedness of the media reports which it considered ‘misleading.’
According to the statement, by virtue of the provisions of Section 10 (1) of the Education (National Minimum Standards and Establishment of Institutions) Act, Cap E3, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, the National Universities Commission (NUC), is constitutionally empowered to lay down minimum standards for all programmes in Nigerian Universities, including granting approval for their establishment and accrediting them at maturity (First Semester of 300 Level).
The statement further reads in part: “It is instructive therefore to state that, by default, no Nigerian University has the power to commence any academic programme without prior approval from NUC, as doing so, contravenes the laws of the land. NUC’s approvals for the commencement of programmes are always conveyed after a successful resource verification visit to the proposed academic programme (s) in question. Suffice that, resource verification visit is implicitly mandatory for any proposed programme to get NUC’s nod for takeoff.”
“Over the years, the University of Calabar, has consistently observed all extant regulations governing the establishment of programmes in the Nigerian University System. Unfortunately, this was not the case, with the commencement of the Faculty of Engineering and Faculty of Pharmacy with their associated Departments and programmes, as well as, the B.A Fine and Applied Arts and B.Sc. Mass Communication, programmes etc, without prior resource verification visits.”
When contacted, Dr. Joseph Ekpang, the Head of Department, Mass Communication (one of the affected programmes), confirmed the development to EKO HOT BLOG, noting that the viral media reports had been taken out of context.
“The fact is that the departments and the faculties that were affected were not given approval to run the programmes before they started,” he said.
“There are minimum basics that you need to get, before you invite NUC to come and verify.”
Dr. Ekpang further stated that there had been a belated attempt to secure the verification for the affected programmes during the 2019/2020 session, which was successful, but was consequently truncated by the long break occasioned by the coronavirus pandemic and the ASUU Strike which had chalked up most of 2020.
He asserted that at no point in time had the affected students been asked transfer to other Universities to continue their programmes, since such a provision was not statutorily obtainable.
READ ALSO: University Student Arrested For Faking Own Abduction
“They can’t go to other universities. That part of the information is wrong. NUC cannot send them to another University because, ab initio, they were not students. It is only when you lose accreditation that they send you to another university to complete your programme.”
He, however, noted that the University was exploring internal solutions which could imply transferring the students to related courses of study within the University to continue their academic programmes.
According to him, the affected programmes have now obtained due clearance from the Commission to commence fresh intake up until when NUC will be required to come back to give its verdict on accreditation.
“Already they have received approval, so that one is already done. They won’t come back for verification anymore. They’ve given them approval. The next time they’re coming is for accreditation, which should enable you to have your first set of graduands.”
Advertise or Publish a Story on EkoHot Blog:
Kindly contact us at [email protected]. Breaking stories should be sent to the above email and substantiated with pictorial evidence.
Citizen journalists will receive a token as data incentive.
Call or Whatsapp: 0803 561 7233, 0703 414 5611
