PANS Set To Celebrate World AIDS Day

The National body of the Pharmaceutical Association of Nigeria Students is prepared to celebrate annual World AIDS day. The day which is the 1st of December of every year is set aside to further create awareness and educate the masses about the Acquired Immunodeficiency Virus (AIDS) and its causative virus; the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV).

This year, the national association which currently has its secretariat at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-ife would be marking the day with some awareness activities on the OAU campus. Some of the activities include; free HIV testing, distribution of free protection and professional counselling services. The activities would be holding at the Students Union Building Car Park on Thursday, 1st December, 2016.

OAU Releases First 2016/2017 Admission List

Following several weeks of anticipation, this is to notify aspirants of the Obafemi Awolowo University at the general public that the University has released her first admission list. Aspirants are advised to view their admission statuses on the JAMB portal  (Here). We wish aspirants success.

However, supplementary lists may be released as time goes by so we would advise aspirants not yet admitted to continue to be on the lookout.

Man The Mic 2017: Official Press Release

Following tips and anticipatory actions, organisers of Man The Mic 2017 have come out with an official release as regards the programme. According to the release, Man The Mic is a training/coaching platform for students interested in the media and public speaking; aspiring MCs, OAPs, VJs etc. Find below the full release.


Press Release On Man The Mic

Man the mic is a platform to coach young individuals that have interest in media and communications. People that want to be MCs, OAPs, VJs, Presenters, hosts, public speakers etc. We then give you a platform (real life event) to practice what you have learnt. You will man the mic. At Man The Mic, we don't just coach/train you, we give you a platform to act it out.
The participants will be groomed intensively for 2 days by Professionals among who we have:
A Top-rated Radio Station Owner.
Widely known and sound Masters of Ceremonies.
2 leading Video Jockeys  and presenters for a Lagos-based Television Station.
A Professional in Corporate Communications and Barrister at Law.
An astute and prolific public speaker and many more.
Man The Mic is powered by Seal Magazine.

How To Register:
Get a form at a subsidised rate of #3,000 now  till December 31st, 2016 by purchasing your forms from Timi: 08131145829 or Febi (OAU): 08073370816 or solar (OUI) : 08141158079

Please note that there are limited forms available. Price for registration will go back to #5,000 which is the actual price of the training from January 1st, 2017. The 40% discount in the fee is for early bird i.e. people who register before January 1st, 2017.

Who Should Participate:
Every individual who has interest in media and communications.
Also, every individual who would like to brush up their skills in the field of Media And Communications.
And Everyone who would like to harness full potentials from their skills of communication.

When and Where Is Man The Mic Holding:
Man The Mic holds in January 2017 at the Ancient City of Ile-ife. There is affordable accommodation for intending participants coming from outside Ile-ife.
Man The Mic..... the stage is set

For further enquiries kindly contact us via
manthemicoffice@gmail.com
08131145829, 08073370816
Facebook: @manthemic
Instagram: @manthemic

SSS Officers Allegedly Raid Mayfair, Unjustly Brutalise Students

Things turned awry for the residents of Solar Close, Mayfair, Ile-ife at about 7:00am today, 22nd November 2016 as alleged members of SSS visited the area and started ransacking, molesting its residents.

According to the residents of the area, most of whom are students of the Obafemi Awolowo University and The Polytechnic, Ile-ife, this would not be the first time such an incident would be occurring. The said officers accused the students of possession of stolen laptops, asking for the provision of receipts for the devices found in most of the rooms raided. However, the students have claimed that this is only a device by the alleged officers to brutalise and extort the students.

In the raid earlier today, the officers were said to have unjustly arrested a number of students, some of who have examinations to write this morning. However, as at the time of compiling this report, some of the students were said to have been released.

This would not be the first allegations of unjust Police brutality and extortion cases, as several other students have also claimed attacks at Bank premises and sometimes even just by walking on the streets. We hereby appeal to the appropriate authorities to look into these rapidly increasing number of cases, maybe once again, the police can be "friends" to students of the Obafemi Awolowo University.

"Students Should Treat Toilets As Second Bedroom"- Ojogbon Comments On World Toilet Day

 In an exclusive interaction with OAU Peeps News Agency, erstwhile Welfare director of the Obafemi Awolowo University Students Union, Ajewole Martins O. has passed a few comments on the state of the accessibility and use of toilets on campus. In his piece, he states some of his experience as Welfare Director in advocating for an improved access to toilets. Find below his comments; 

  

TOILETS AND THEIR ACCESSIBILITY ON OAU
Having access to toilets that are in good and acceptable state and situation within OAU campus timely will be a great accomplishment if accomplished and currently, its possibility can be likened to the possibility of having access to the  office of the Vice Chancellor of the school; mostly, in the academic area. This high degree of inaccessibility cannot be disconnected from factors like inadequacy of the facilities, over-personalisation of the facilities by some set of people and unnecessary and unreasonable restrictions of students by the attendants of these facilities. In many part of academic areas today, the only perceivable odour is offensive one from Human wastes. Back of lecture theatres like AGLT A-C, AUD 1-2, BOO A-C and the back of our laboratories and some offices epitomize this assertion above.

The fight against this monster that is denying our environment of good and palatable odour would have been won successfully during my stay in office as Welfare Director if not for the unfriendly use students usually subject these facilities to ( for example, our hostels' toilets) and this in turn justify the action and motive of the people that personalise them and those attendants that restrict students from their usage.

Personally and particularly, when I was Welfare Director of the Students' Union, I had series of meeting with attendants of these facilities in all faculties, Deans of some Faculties and HOD of some departments on the need to make toilets facilities accessible for students, but despite getting positive outcome from these meetings, students always abuse the right of use they have on these facilities which makes turning it to a privilege by oppressors inevitable.

However, as long as feeding is important, so is accessibility to toilets and on this note, agitation for timely accessibility to toilets that will be in good state and situation must start in order to awake authority to do the needful. I will also like to implore our students to always see toilets like our second bedroom.

Thanks.

Ajewole Martins O.

#OAUpeeps #WorldToiletDay

World Toilet Day: We Give A Shit

Upon first coming across the idea that there is a day dedicated to toilets, two emotions tend to first come to mind; humour and disgust. However, upon a closer assessment of the ideals upon which the day was established and adopted by the United Nations, the idea of a day to advocate for better access to good toilets might not be a bad idea afterall.

In 2015, it was estimated that about 2.4 billion (about 1 out of 3 people) lack access to improved sanitation facilities, and under 1 billion people continue to defecate openly. And about 58% of all cases of diarrhea are caused from unsafe water and poor sanitation and hygiene (which includes poor handwashing behaviors). This means that in 2013, more than 340,000 children under 5 died from water, sanitation and hygiene related diarrhea – i.e. nearly 1,000 child deaths a day. Having to defecate in the open also infringes on human safety and dignity. 

Locally, members of the Obafemi Awolowo University Community would agree that the access to good toilets in the University are sub-optimal. Toilets in the Halls of Residence are grossly misused by students and under-maintained by the appropriate authorities. However, things seem to be improving with the new management of the University but the poor use of the toilets from the students end persist. The scenario is even worse in the academic environment of the University: Apart from the College of Health Sciences, Faculty of Administration, Faculty of Pharmacy and a few others, other faculty and departmental toilets are almost always locked. The theme of this year’s World Toilet Day is "toilets and jobs". And in observation of the worldwide advocacy, OAU Peeps News Agency, with the support of some other organizations would be assessing the toilet conditions on campus and advocating for an improved access and use of toilets, especially in the academic area of the university. You can join the discussion on any of our social media platforms;

Twitter and Instagram- @oaupeeps

Facebook- OAU Peeps

#OAUpeeps #WorldToiletDay #ToiletsAndJobs

Ojelabi Jesujoba

Editor-In-Chief

OAU Peeps News Agency

OAU Lecturers Divided Over ASUU Strike, Faction Boycotts

By Channels Television



As the 7-day warning strike declared by the national body of the Academic Staff Union of University (ASUU) enters its second day, a faction of the lecturers at the Obafemi Awolowo University in Ile-Ife, Osun state have boycotted the nationwide strike.

Channels Television’s visit to the university revealed that students are currently having their first semester examination for the 2015/16 academics session under the supervision of the lecturers.

Speaking on the strike and their reason for not joining, the chairman of the Committee of Deans in OAU, Professor Adeagbo Amusan, said that the boycott was in the interest of the students, who had wasted so much time since the start of the session due to incessant strike.

“It’s a unanimous decision that much as we are aware of the directive of NEC, we would want our examinations to go on unhindered. We key into the national body of ASUU but we have some local issues to sort out here and we don’t want to externalize our internal affairs.

“We agreed on compassionate level having lost a lot of ground that we need to consider the plight of our students. Because we ought to have had this exams this time last year,” he said.

However, a factional chairman of ASUU, OAU chapter, Niyi Sunmonu claimed that the directive to embark on a warning strike was not communicated to his committee.

“The directive from the national ASUU was not directed to us, but as faithful ASUU members we still considered it at our congress. And the decision of the congress was that since we were not communicated officially, the referendum to go on strike or not was not before us”.

It was an entirely different position, when Channels TV spoke with another factional chairman of ASUU in the school, Dr Caleb Aborisade.

He said members were in compliance with the directive of the NEC, which he said is to fight for the good of Nigerian universities and the welfare of students.

“The greatest offence anybody can commit in ASUU is to break a strike which some people have decided to do.

“We resolved at our congress that we will not disturb anybody from holding exams, they go by their own conscience, and it’s by choice. For example, my own exams, there is no way it can be done, because I’m on strike,” he maintained.

In his reaction, the Public Relations Officer of the university, Abiodun Olarewaju maintained that the school did not comply with the directive because of the adverse effect it would have on its students and their academics.

“We are very much aware of the fact that ASUU has directed its members to go on strike, but in every situation there is always an exception. Ours is an exception because we have lost a lot of ground and we must recover it.

“Most of our colleagues in other universities are in their own second semester and we are at first semester. So, an overwhelming number of lecturers have agreed not to join the strike, because our students are writing their examinations and we want then to finish”.

Convocation: OAU Begins Online Registration For Graduands

Graduating students of the 2014/2015 academic session can now proceed to complete an online ‘Graduate form’ which will enable them receive their certificate and participate in the forthcoming convocation events, OAU Peeps News Agency can report.

The concerned graduates are to required to log in via http://eportal.oauife.edu.ng/gradLogin.php with their matriculation number after which they will be able to fill the graduate form, make payments and print receipt.

Instructions after you successfully login
1. Click Fill Graduate Form at the top left corner to Complete the Online Convocation Form
2. ENSURE YOU PROVIDE CORRECT DATA TO TITLE, GENDER, PHONE NUMBER AND EMAIL ADDRESS
3. Click Payment to Generate RRR Slip For Payment Through Remita
4. Print 5 Copies of the Receipt
5. Submit the Receipt to Faculty, Bursary, Internal Audit and DAA Office (Exam and Records) for collection of Certificate
6. Contact Director, Academic Affairs for any complaint or wrong information on profile
7. All Graduating Students must complete this online Registration on or before Friday, 2nd December, 2016.

The total fee for the convocation is N15,000 plus a N350 ‘service charge’.

Admission Cut-off Marks Into OAU Pre-degree Programme For 2016/2017 Session

CUT-OFF marks for Pre-degree Entrance Exam (2016/2017 Session)

BCP – 40%,
CMP – 40%,
EGL – 40%,
EGM – 40%,
GLR – 40%,
GMP – 40%,
MGE – 40%

Application For 2016/2017 OAU Predegree Programme Still Ongoing & Makeup Entrance Exam Holds November 24

The Centre for Distance Learning, Obafemi Awolowo University has announced that the Makeup Exam Into Pre-Degree Programme (2016/2017 Session) will hold on Thursday, 24th November, 2016 at Centre for Distance Learning, O.A.U, Moro Campus, Moro by 11:00 A.M. In the meantime, application for the programme is still ongoing.

Goodluck!

OAU Reminds Students Of Their Matriculation Oath, Warns Against Physical Abuse

Credit: UI

The Division of Students’ Affairs (DSA), Obafemi Awolowo University has warned students of the institution to desist from any form of physical abuse, even as self-help mechanism.

In a statement signed by the acting Dean of the DSA, Mrs Akinola, “The Division of Students’ Affairs hereby reminds all students of their Matriculation Oath to, among others, refrain at all costs from any physical attack or abuse of any person on campus. The University will enforce this particular oath strictly without any reservation.”

“Please note that physical abuse is prohibited on campus and there should be no recourse to self-help. Henceforth, if a case of physical abuse including beating, slapping, or any form of assault or violent attack done by any student to another is established, there will be instant disciplinary action, according to the oath of matriculation.

“To this end, all students are enjoined to comply with their matriculation oath at all times and to desist from taking the law into their hands,” the statement further read.

The statement may not be unconnected to the recent ‘fight for all’ which happened in Awolowo Hall of residence some days ago. Some students threw caution to the wind as a reported rape case was been moderated by some other students.

OAU CDL Announces Resumption Of 2016/2017 Academic Session

The Centre for Distance Learning, Obafemi Awolowo University has announced the 6th of December, 2016 as the set date for the resumption of 2016/2017 academic session for pre-degree students. Screening of the fresh students and their registration are billed to commence the same day of resumption.

Below is the registration schedule for newly admitted predites based on their subject combinations.

• Tuesday, 6th December, 2016 (9 am – 4 pm) - Biology/Chemistry/Physics (BCP)

• Wednesday, 7th December, 2016 (9 am – 4 pm) - Chemistry/Mathematics/Physics (CMP), Geography/Mathematics/ Physics (GMP) Economics/Government/Mathematics(EGM)

• Government/Lit./Rel. Studies (GLR), Mathematics/Geog./Economics (MGE) & Economics/Govt/Literature in Eng. (EGL)

There will be Parents’ Forum at 12.00 noon each day where all parents are expected to be present.

As parts of the registration packages, admitted students are to present the following for registration on resumption:

i. Original and photocopy of your admission letter

ii. Downloaded copy of medical history and examination form duly signed and stamped compulsorily from a government hospital.

iii. Downloaded copy of CDL Clinic Biodata duly completed

iv. A downloaded copy of oath form duly completed and signed by both parent and student. Postal stamp of N50.00 should be affixed as appropriate on the form. (Make a photocopy for yourself and keep for orientation day.)

v. Originals and photocopies of your credentials (WAEC, NECO, etc.)

vi. 3 Copies of your Hostel allocation Slip vii. Proof of payments (original Copies of your e-payment documents)

viii. Six passport photographs.

Alongside the above, the fresh students are to report to the Centre for Distance Learning Campus, Moro, Ife-North Local Government with the following: -

• A 2x6 mattress, a pillow (For students allocated to hostels outside campus only)

• Cooking utensils.

• 2 pairs of beddings.

OAU Releases 2016/2017 Pre-degree Admission List, Increases Fees

This is to inform the Obafemi Awolowo University Pre-degree programme aspirants that the admission list for the 2016/2017 session is out. Applicants are expected to log in to their respective account on the OAU CDL porter to download their admission letter and the registration package which comprises of the hostel oath form, medical history and examination and with clinic bio-data.

As regards the school fees, admitted male students are required to pay a full fee of N187,500 and the females N222,500 as against N177,500 and N212,500 charged respectively last session. The increase in fees has been steady in recent years. Two sessions ago, the fee was increased from N162,500 to N177,500 for males and N212,500 for females.

The breakdown of the school fees goes thus:

MALE
Fees - Amount (N)
Tuition - 100,000
Acceptance - 5,000
Accommodation - 40,000
Administrative Charges - 10,000
Medical Charges - 10,000
ID Card - 1,500
Maintanance/Caution Fee - 5,000
e-Services - 6,000
Examination Fee - 10,000
Total - N187,500

FEMALE
Fees - Amount (N)
Tuition - 100,000
Acceptance - 5,000
Accommodation - 75,000
Administrative Charges - 10,000
Medical Charges - 10,000
ID Card - 1,500
Caution Fee - 5,000
e-Services - 6,000
Examination Fee - 10,000
Total - N222,500

The management has however given an ultimatum of on or before Monday, December 5, 2016 for admitted individuals to make FULL payment, else risk losing the admission. The fees are payable through E-tranzact or interswitch webpay links on the accounts of those admitted.

NYSC 2016 Batch 'B' Stream II To Begin Orientation January 2017

Corps members of the second stream of the 2016 Batch B will begin their orientation course in January, 2017, the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has said.

On Wednesday, at the maiden media parley organized by NYSC, its Director General, Brigadier General Sulaimon Kazaure said all eligible graduates will be mobilized for National Service. But the capacity of the orientation ground will see PCMs go for their orientation course in two streams.

"So far, we have received green light from the relevant government agencies to prepare for the mobilization of all qualified prospective Corps members.

"However, the limited cumulative capacity of the Orientation camps nationwide necessitates a second stream Orientation course for the 2016 Batch 'B' which is being planned for January 2017," Kazaure said.

Kazaure lamented the failure of some states and local governments to discharge their statutory obligations to the Scheme pointing out that their attitude resulted in the limited capacity and quality of facilities in most Orientation camps across the country.

The Director-General stressed that the provision of Orientation camp facilities and post-camp accommodation and transport of Corps members were among the responsibilities of states and local governments as spelt out in the NYSC Act.

Others he enumerated include logistics support for inspection of Corps locations, material support for community development service and security of Corps members.

He, therefore, appealed to states and local governments that are not discharging their statutory obligations to reconsider their stance and give their support towards the success of the Scheme's operations.

In the mean time, PCMs are expected to start printing their call up letter starting from Monday next week after which the first stream will commence their orientation course Thursday next week.

OAU 2016/2017 Predegree Entrance Test Results Released

The results of the recently conducted entrance examination for admission to the 2016/2017 OAU Predegree programme have just been released. To check yours, you will be required to login with your Username and Password with which you registered with. To check now, CLICK HERE TO LOGIN

Goodluck!

Apply For 2016/2017 Lagos State Undergraduate Scholarship

The Lagos State Scholarship Board is the agency in charge of scholarship, bursary and other related matters within the state. It grants Scholarship awards to deserving indigenes in various tertiary institutions for full time studies in order to assist these students financially.

Applications are invited for:

Lagos State Undergraduate Scholarship Award Scheme 2016 / 2017

Process for Eligibility for Local Under-Graduate Scholarship Award

All applicants must have gained full time admission into an accredited Nigerian tertiary Institution.

All Under-graduate applicants:

Where CGPA scale is 7.0 (e.g University of Ibadan) he /she must possess a minimum of 4.9/7.0
Where CGPA scale is 5.0 (e.g University of Lagos) he /she must possess a minimum of 3.5/5.0
Where CGPA scale is 4.0 (e.g polytechnics and colleges of education) he /she must possess a Minimum of 2.8/4.0

Where applicant is a medical student in 200L, option 1, 2 and 3 applies
Where applicant is a medical student in 300L and above a minimum of Credit is required in their result.

All applicants must be in their second year or above
All applicants must have completed LASRRA Registration.

All applicants must have a signed letter of identification from their respective Oba
All applicants must have a signed letter of identification from their respective local government.

All applicants must purchase a Scholarship application form. (Payment of N2,000.00 for Local Scholarship) through the Office of Special Adviser on Education, Block 5, 3rd Floor, Alausa Secretariat.

All applicants must upload clear scanned copies of all documents to ascertain the genuineness of their claims. Documents like:

Admission Letter
School Identity Card or Valid means of school identification
Letter of identification from Oba
Letter of identification from Local Government
SSCE result
Lagos State Resident Registration Agency(LASSRA) registration card
Passport Photograph (clear background not older than three months).

Transcript or Result statement duly signed and stamped from school stating previous session CGPA results clearly
Shortlisted applicant must participate in a Computer Based Test on 7th and 8th February, 2017 conducted by Dragnet Solutions Limited in conjunction with Lagos State Scholarship Board.
Successful tested applicants will be contacted for oral interview

How to Apply
Qualified and interested candidates should:
Apply @ https://scholastica.ng/schemes/lssbundergraduate

1.) Before you start this application, ensure you have purchased a Scholarship application form (Payment of N2,000.00 for Local Scholarship) through the Office of Special Adviser on Education, Block 5, 3rd Floor, Alausa Secretariat then secure your Voucher pin from the Scholarship Board office. Thereafter, have clear scanned copies of the following documents:

Passport photograph with white background not more than 3 months old (450px by 450px not more than 200kb)
Treasury receipt of N2,000 for the scholarship form
Admission Letter
School Identity Card
SSCE Certificate
Letter of identification from Oba
Letter of identification from Local Government
LASSRA registration card
Transcript or Statement of Results duly signed and stamped from school stating previous session CGPA results clearly

2.) Ensure that information are filled accurately to avoid mix up after application
3.) Ensure the documents are named according to what they represent to avoid mixing up documents during upload
4.) Ensure you attach the appropriate documents when asked to upload

To apply, follow the steps below:
Click on “Apply Now” tab.
Click on “Register Now” to create an account.
Proceed to your email box to activate your account
Click on www.scholastica.ng to return to Scholarship site
Enter your registered email and password to upload your information.
Enter your personal information, additional information, educational information, other information and upload required scanned documents.
Ensure the name used in applications matches the names on all documentation in same order. Upload a sworn affidavit or certificate if otherwise.
Ensure you view all documents after uploading, to eliminate errors during uploading.
When asked to upload photo, upload a pass-port photograph with a white background.
Recheck application information to avoid errors
Click “Apply Now” to submit information and provide the secret voucher pin and LASSRA Number in the appropriate column
You will receive an email and a sms that confirms your application was successful.
Return to www.scholastica.ng , enter your Email and Password to download your profile and proceed to have your Head of Department sign the document.
Upload a scanned copy of the signed profile, this would be used for verification.
Keep the hard copy of the signed profile, this would also be used for verification.
Return to www.scholastica.ng and update application with National Identification Number (NIN) to ensure completion

Note:
Please read the eligibility requirement carefully.

Refer to the FAQ page for better clarification.

To secure your voucher pin proceed to the Lagos Scholarship Board office, 254 Ipaja road, Agege, Lagos and show them your treasury receipt.

Multiple applications attract a disqualification penalty from the Scholarship board.
Successful applicants will be contacted for oral interview

Application Deadline 23rd December, 2016.


Credit: Brain News NG

The Ponzi Renaissance: Is Patience Still A Virtue? – Pope Jay

Before anything, I must firstly state that this article was birthed from a very dire need for me to make a quick editorial appearance amidst my circumstantial writing holiday. As a matter of fact, I am unsure that I possess the appropriate adjectives to describe the exigency of this need. However, as my brief appearance should end upon the completion and publication of this necessitated piece of my mind, I cannot guarantee my usual immediate responses to counter-opinions and comments but irrespective, I promise to respond to all in due course.

Due to the nature of my hobbies, the outlook of my personal social media platforms are not quite the usual; I tend to get a comparatively higher number of messages than average. And whilst the price of this is a more tedious process in finding and responding to major messages, it also has its edge. From merely studying the trend of chats and posts, I can extract some of the popular concepts and topics of discourse at a point in time, some of them being peculiar to certain circles of course. And anyone who also likes to pay attention would notice the rapid re-emergence of Ponzi schemes ongoing in the Nigerian media sphere and indeed, Nigeria. From the headlines of the major dailies to the most basic gossip platforms, it’s either MMM or Icharity or Zarfund or whatever other names there are. Worryingly, there is a high tendency that you are qualified with an undesirable adjective by participants if you claim ignorance or no interest in any of these schemes. However, assessing some of the fundamentals of these schemes, it quite interesting to know that a rather high number of Nigerians are part of them, with some even going as far as “idolizing” them.

A Ponzi scheme is commonly defined as a business or investment arrangement where its operator pays returns to its investors/participants from funds earned from new participants rather than through legitimate business activities. Named after Charles Ponzi, the scheme bears some resemblance to Pyramid marketing schemes which is also sometimes regarded as fraudulent and has been banned in a number of countries. In simple terms, without new participants, a Ponzi scheme cannot thrive. The natural answer to this challenge would be that there is no way new participants would not arise, perhaps this is true, there are after all about seven billion people in the world. But then again, considering the quite extravagant interest that is usually promised in these schemes, most tend to often get to a point where even Seven billion is not enough and a crash of the scheme becomes inevitable. After having the discussion with a number of participants of these schemes, most tend to just come to the “Make I sha chop my own” reaction at this point. Typical of the Homo sapien.

But then, commenting on the rapid re-emergence of these schemes without linking to the current wicked economic realities of the country would be grossly incomplete because although MMM Nigeria may issue disclaimers that it is not a business investment or enterprise, it may be more than that to the average Nigerian participant- It’s God’s answer to his prayers. Maybe the “small work, big pay” prayer got a better answer; “No work, big pay”. Little wonder the schemes have started to gain strong grounds in religious institutions, who says your spiritual guider can’t be your MMM guider? Then there are the even worse pyramid schemes. They tell you to come and pay N1 and bring in seven people to collect N7, then the seven go out to bring in another seven and it goes on until there are no more seven to bring in.  

We grew up listening to the maxim. “Hard work pays”, but the only thing you get to hear these days is “MMM pays” and “Money must be made (fast)”. Sadly, the patient dog also stopped eating the fatest bone years ago, and the question now is…is patience then still a virtue?

Pope Jay

ASUU Strike: Examinations To Continue As Scheduled – OAU Management

The management of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife has said the nationwide warning strike of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) planned to start on Wednesday will not hinder the ongoing examination in the institution.

This development was communicated after the acting Vice Chancellor, Prof. Anthony Elujoba met with departments’ Heads and other senior members of the institution. “Following the meeting of the acting Vice Chancellor and all Heads of Departments, Readers and Professors in the university, Monday, 14th November, 2016, it has been resolved that the ongoing 2015/206 Harmattan Semester examinations will progress as scheduled,” the Registrar, D. O. Awoyemi said.

In the meantime, the embattled chairman of the OAU chapter of ASUU, Dr Caleb Aborisade has reportedly told the leadership of the Association of Campus Journalists (ACJ) in OAU that the members of his union will tomorrow, Tuesday take a position on the planned warning strike in its congress scheduled for 10:00am. “...that is their [OAU Management] own headache, we will hold a congress tomorrow and declare our strike as the custom of ASUU,” Aborisade told a correspondent of ACJ OAU.

OAU Peeps News Agency had earlier reported that ASUU will embark on a 7-day warning strike, starting from Wednesday this week to press home for some pending and new demands from the federal government. If by any means activities are halted by ASUU’s action, it will be the first interruption of academic calendar under Elujoba’s administration of the institution.

ASUU Begins Warning Strike Wednesday, November 16

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has said its members nationwide will proceed on a one-week warning strike starting from Wednesday, November 16. This is aimed at compelling the federal government to address some pending and new issues.

According to a Statement signed by the ASUU National President, Biodun Ogunyemi and seen by OAU Peeps News Agency, the strike will be “total and comprehensive” and members of the Union are only to take instruction from their chairpersons during the period of the warning strike.

From the same statement, ASUU wants the FG to pay the earned academic allowances of its members, exempt universities from the Treasury Single Account (TSA) policy and also renegotiate the 2009 agreement.

Others are the registration of the Nigerian University Pension Management Committee (NUPEMCO) and funding for the revitalization of public universities based on the FGN-ASUU MoU of November 2013. The non-payment of salaries of staff in the primary schools and shortfall in salaries leading to payment of fractions of staff salaries are other contentious issues.

Currently, OAU students are writing their 2015/2016 harmattan semester examination and that is due to end by early next month. Any truncation of this as a result of a strike action would extend the relatively stable academic calendar for the session.

3 Days To The Start Of 2016 ‘Black Friday’ Sales, Here Is What You Need To Know

Black Friday is the day following Thanksgiving Day in the United States (the fourth Thursday of November). Since the early 2000s, it has been regarded as the beginning of the Christmas shopping season in the US, and most major retailers open very early (and more recently during overnight hours) and offer promotional sales.

Black Friday is not an official holiday, but California and some other states observe “The Day after Thanksgiving” as a holiday for state government employees, sometimes in lieu of another federal holiday such as Columbus Day.

In Nigeria, this day has also been adopted by several online stores to sell promotional goods. For 2016, some of the leading online stores have announced their Black Friday sales programme; Konga will have its special sales between Friday, 18th November and Monday, November 21. Another leading store, Jumia will its own special sales between Monday, November 14 and Friday, November 25.

As at today (03/11/2016), one of the leading online stores, Jumia has disclosed the expected discounts for various categories of their goods. In its publicity, electronic goods will attract up to 50% discount; Television sets (30%), Game consoles (45%), Tablets (50%), Smartphones (50%) and laptop (30%).

Before the sales, online sales are expected to release a more comprehensive breakdown of sales in different categories of their market. For instance, last year, Jumia announced different discounts in various categories; In the Cameras & Electronics category, discount was up to 65%. Others include the Women’s Clothing and Men’s Clothing with 60% discount, Women’s and Men’s Accessories also had 50% discount, even as Men’s Shoes and Women’s Shoes got up to 55% discount.

Sales during Black Fridays are usually on first arrived, first served basis because of the huge traffic of online buyers who are always willing to participate in the greatly discounted sales.

If the statistics released by Konga on its Black Friday 2014 (Yakata Sales) is something to go by, the store had 5x the amount of its usual daily traffic recording a maximum 1,659 orders placed within an hour. The same record revealed that over $3.5M (N600m) was made in the sales last year.

Even with the statistics from several online stores recounting the success of the Black Friday sales in previous years, the recount of experiences by many social media users who participated in the sales have been mixed – some interesting and some are not palatable. Some people still do not believe the sales happened because they weren’t able to buy at the displayed discounted prices. Some have even gone hard on suspected online stores and labelling the Black Friday thing a scam.

For students of Obafemi Awolowo University who are willing to take advantage of this year’s Black Friday sales, here are some useful tips for you:

1.) Get money that will get you some items.
2.) Register with the online store(s) you wish to buy from during the Black Friday sales before the day. I’ll advise you have an account with more than one online store. Registration is free.
3.) Have a list of items you wish to buy during the sales so as to prevail over distractions that could arise from discounts you’ll see on other goods while trying to order.
4.) Make sure your devices are fully charged before the anticipated hours. There may be no power supply at the location where you will be accessing the internet at that time (especially for those that will be using the Wifi network).
5.) Locate a place where the signal of the network you will be using is strong. For those that will be using the INTECU service, areas like EDM, Health Centre have good reports.
6.) Sale is expected to begin 12:00am of the sale’s day. As such, it is advisable to start checking the portals of the online stores starting from that moment to be among the first buyers.
7.) Though I am aware Konga has announced an adjustment to its ‘Konga Pays’ service which offers a further 5% discounts for those that pay instantly with their credit cards, I strongly advise you opt for ‘Pay on delivery’ if available for the goods you wish to order. This is to ensure you confirm your order is in good condition before paying. I have a non-palatable experience with this.

NOTE: Black Friday sales will be coming up on almost all the major online stores (including Amazon, Ebay and others) across the globe.

Finally, remember to order something for OAU Peeps News Agency.

Goodluck!

OAU 2016 Convocation: Who Are Those Elujoba Will Be Convoking?

I waited for so long to know who Tunde’s sister, aunty Oyinkansola will be getting married to. My absence from home most times because of school works made me miss meeting with Uncle Felix whenever he comes visiting.

He isn’t based in Nigeria, but from what Tunde told me the last time we saw each other, he [Felix] has been in the country since last week, and he finally left for Madrid, Spain only three days before I returned from school. I missed another chance of meeting him again!

Just like the Yoruba people put it, I believed ‘egberun Saamu o le sa mo Olorun lowo,’ I was so sure I was going to meet Uncle Felix soon since the Introduction ceremony was just three weeks away.

Unknowingly to my poor self, Tunde’s family had something ‘weird’ in stock. On that fateful morning, having left campus a day before, stabbing my Botany laboratory class, I realized this runaway Uncle Felix won’t be coming for his own Introduction ceremony. Now, you can relate to why I said ‘weird’. He was represented by a medium-sized portrait framed picture of himself. I was once again denied a feel of who he was.

The same experience seems to be playing out in my beloved alma mata. Some days ago, the Obafemi Awolowo University finally announced its 42nd Convocation ceremony. According to the information on the institution’s website, the programme of events lined up for the annual ceremony will run from Wednesday, December 7, 2016 to Friday, December 9, 2016.

Just like recent ones, this year’s convocation isn’t different. Only the members of the 2014/2015 graduating class are supposed to be convoking for the event since there is no deficit graduating set that is yet to be convoked. However, viewing from some standpoints, questions are being asked if the ceremony is actually meant for this set of people – the 2014/2015 graduating set.

Professor Anthony Elujoba’s vice chancellorship of the institution came with many hopes and expectation. It didn’t take much time before its effect, or perhaps the goodwill that accompanied his emergence started to manifest and being felt by students.

For the first time since I got familiar with OAU, students had a lecture-free day for the matriculation ceremony. That was impressive for me. On the same day I was matriculated some years back, I had to attend a laboratory class alongside the ceremony. So when I heard this year’s development, I could not help it but ask myself in 3 Idiot’s Silencer style if OAU is gradually moving away from its archaic ‘screwing’ mode, all in the name of doing things differently, just to prove a point that the school is tough. That is not the topic for today, maybe next time.

Graduating students were not left out in the newness arguably brought over by Elujoba. I can’t vividly recall the last time graduating students were presented for the compulsory Youth Service the same year they graduated. But this time, most of those who finished upon the completion of the 2014/2015 academic session will be mobilized by the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) in a couple of weeks.

In all honesty, I had zeroed my mind for Youth Service this year, upon the advice offered me by my senior colleagues. I remember Walexy constantly told me as I rounded up my final year project to look for something to keep me busy till next year when Service would be realistic.

Now, it looks like the unexpected and forthcoming mobilization for Service is not coming without a price for the lucky OAU graduands, in fact a huge one and the price here is the ‘convocation events’.

NYSC had released its 2016 Batch ‘B’ time-table over a month ago and the 3-week orientation course, otherwise known as ‘camp’ for Prospective Corps Members (PCMs) will begin November 24 and end December 14. Don’t forget OAU’s convocation which is meant for the same PCMs has been announced for December 7 – 9. I believe you understand what that means. Apparently, you are going to ask yourself that the OAU 2016 Convocation is for which graduands then?

For the soon-to-be corps members to be able to attend the convocation ceremony, they’ll have to secure permission from their various camp locations. This is worrisome because of the risk and expenses this may come with.

For instance, if I am posted to Taraba state, apart from about N25,000 that i’ll have to look for in this recession time for my transport fare to and fro my camp base, I also risk travelling on the bad and unsafe Nigerian roads. But why are we doing this to ourselves?

You may want to say it is not compulsory to attend, but I want to ask if that is the same opinion shared by the university management. If it is not necessary for these students to attend their own convocation ceremony, then why is it in place in the first place when the feasibility of attendance is obviously straining?

The University of Ibadan fixed its convocation events for November 11-17. The Federal University of Technology, Akure had its own planned for November 19. Some other schools will have theirs next year when the orientation course is over. They all considered the availability of those graduating students.

I want to be present in my own convocation events. I don’t just want to pay for what I won’t be part of. I only hope the Elujobic effect comes into action once again. I know it may be difficult to change the dates because of the many arrangements already in place, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t possible. Orientation course ends December 14 and OAU can have its convocation after then in order to avoid the avoidable and stories that touch afterwards.