OSCOTECH: Group condemns plan to create satellite campus in Obokun
Khalid ABRAHAM
The Esa-Oke Renewal Initiative (ERI), a prominent group of eminent indigenes of Esa-Oke in Obokun local government area of Osun state has described the alleged plan by the chairman of Governing Council of Osun State College of Technology, Esa-Oke Mr. Diran Odeyemi to create a satellite campus in Ibokun from the existing campus as illogical.
Advertisement
In an open letter by the group on the matter, which was also submitted to the Governor Ademola Adeleke, it condemned the action of Mr. Diran Odeyemi describing it as immoral, illegal, self-serving, and unbecoming of a top public official of his status.
It was learnt that a delegation from the community representing the Oba-in-Council waded in and visited top government functionaries in Osogbo, and the allegation was denied. The Osun state government subsequently issued a press statement denying the action of Diran Odeyemi.
However, they said Odeyemi remained adamant in the pursuit of his agenda as revealed by his responses during his radio interview on the day of a protest by youths in Esa –Oke and his press release on Thursday February 8 after the government had denied the rumour of removing courses from OSCOTECH Esa-Oke.
Advertisement
The group said elders and opinion leaders have waded in with a view to unraveling the facts. These leaders cut across age groups, political affiliations, traditional groups, socio-cultural groups, and the elites at home and in diaspora.
The open letter notes the following facts emerged from the painstaking consultations and investigations carried out on the crisis:
1. OSCOTECH was indeed established by the defunct Oyo State government in 1981 under the administration of late Uncle Bola Ige, SAN. It was one of the four (4) Satellite Campuses established to take technical education closer to the people. It should be noted that not a single course or Department was removed from the main campus then.
2. The administration of Governor Adeleke upgraded the satellite campuses in Iree and Esa-Oke into full Polytechnic and College of Technology in Iree and Esa-Oke, respectively.
3. Each of the Institutions has been operational with full accreditation by the regulatory body, NBTE.
4. Safe for occasional conflicts, the College had been co-existing with the host community, Esa-Oke, for the past 43 years, contrary to insinuations of hostilities by Diran Odeyemi. It is on record that the large expanse of land allocated to the College was free from the community without any compensation from government.
5. The current management under the able leadership of the Rector, Dr. Adegoke, has facilitated the rapid growth of the College with approval of new courses, physical infrastructure, and sustenance of peace in the College.
6. The Governing Council under two predecessors of Diran Odeyemi worked tirelessly to attract funds from Federal government agency, TETFUND for many existing projects without mortgaging the growth of the College on the altar selfishness.
7. Our findings revealed that the College management applied for five (5) new courses which has been approved by NBTE. One of the courses is Mass Communication which will require a dedicated building and equipment for effective learning in future. This is one of the conditions for final approval by NBTE.
8. The College had since applied and obtained approval to construct a #272 million building for the Department of Mass Communication for the College immediately.
9. Diran Odeyemi chaired the procurement process for award of the contract for the building project recently. He obviously saw this and wanted to use his vantage position to take a pie from the project approved for Esa-Oke to Ibokun under funny excuses.
10. The insinuation of creating a Satellite Campus from the OSCOTECH is a non-issue. The Law of the College provides for this. However, the universal process as was followed in 1981 is to duplicate the courses in the satellite campus and possibly deploy some staff from the main Campus to grow the new Institution, and not by balkanizing or depleting the existing facilities or courses in the main campus.
