LAUTECH: Relocating faculty of agric to Iseyin not advisable – Faculty board, gives reasons, options
Femi OGUNLANA
Lecturers in the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), Ogbomoso, Oyo state, have added their voice to the controversy surrounding the planned relocation of the faculty to the fledgling Iseyin campus of the institution, declaring emphatically that the move is virtually counter-productive.
This was the highlight of a faculty board meeting held Wednesday, May 31, attended by not less than 50 professors and others as well as some administrative staff.
The faculty board members using the occasion to congratulate the Oyo state governor, Engr Seyi Makinde, over his inauguration for a second term in office and praying for God’s wisdom for him to succeed with Omituntun 2:0, appealed to him to take another look at the decision even though it was admitted there’s no official letter to the effect.
Sources at the meeting informed Ogbomoso Insight the lecturers bitterly lamented over the proposal noting it would trigger irreversible setback for the faculty and the university in general.
The meeting also reportedly harmonized the fears of the lecturers on the planned relocation which included bringing untold hardships on their families, inflicting them with risk as they would have to constantly travel between Ogbomoso and Iseyin wasting precious time in transit that could have been spent productively, exposing them to security threats, having adverse effects on research and teaching and eliciting termination of collaborative efforts with partners among others.
The meeting, according to findings, noted, “Board members of Faculty of Agriculture LAUTECH Ogbomoso jointly appealed to the Visitor to the University and Governing Council that the movement of the 33-year old faculty is dangerous to their career and livelihood having fully established themselves since the inception of the university 33years ago.
“Members of the faculty have concentrated on teaching, research and community development with high level of commitment and dedication which has earned the university best state university on several occasions.”
Emphasizing the problems associated with the planned movement the agitated staff reportedly pointed out further “The danger in the movement is directly related to our job in terms of teaching and research, also members of our families will be stressed out. It will definitely create professional setback, financial, psychological, social and security threats.
“There are several individual research units and laboratories and farms, which were developed gradually since assumption of duty several years ago and there are several ongoing researches with personal, local and international grants. It is no doubt we have settled down in Ogbomoso over the years with our children and family members and the city has been considered as our comfort zone where we have been managing with meagre resources for upkeep.”
While they reportedly thanked the state’s helmsman whom they described as “The People’s Governor” for regular payment of their salaries, it was underlined that “Relocation to Iseyin will create unsolved problems in many ways.”
The lecturers were
said not to be opposed to the idea of the Iseyin campus “as custodians of knowledge and partner in progress to the university and Oyo state government,” but that the idea should not be used to “create new problems for staff and students.”
They consequently advised government on what to do and how to go about it.
“Alternatively, a new faculty should be established in Iseyin following due process by inviting National Universities Commission to Iseyin for resource verification and later accreditation. Faculties that can be established in Iseyin are not limited to the following; Education, Law, Veterinary Medicine, Social Sciences, Pharmaceutical Sciences and many others.”
While the Dean of the Faculty was said to have affirmed non-receipt of official communication on the matter save the media engagements on it the meeting insisted more would be lost than gained.
“Academic activities in the faculty have gone very far and wide with several collaborations on research and commercial agriculture, some of which are GS farm collaboration on commercial broiler production, NALDA partnership on crop and animal production, and Indorama fertilizer research grant, with several others underway, all which have made the faculty to stand out as the best among faculties of agriculture in Nigerian universities, however, all these would be jeopardized if the plan is seen through,” it is maintained.
A lecturer who spoke with Ogbomoso Insight under conditions of anonymity confirming the meeting disclosed “members of the faculty are worried and concerned over the news of the planned relocation of our faculty and this neccesitated the discussion of the subject matter at the faculty board meeting. We considered the matter from professional and merit points of view and we found the proposal ill-advised.”
Meanwhile, there are insinuations that a particular senior lecturer (names withheld) in the faculty believed to be pushing the agenda “for selfish reasons” failed to attend the meeting even though he was quite aware.
“We know some people are behind the move, it is a devilish agenda but we know the governor will see through their ruse and make best decision,” another source added. ision,” another source added.
