Friday, 8 July 2016

NANS Rejects N2,500 Post-UTME Screening Fee

The National Association of Nigerian Students has rejected kicked the introduction of the admission screening fee of N2,500 by the Federal Government through the Ministry of Education.

Mr Gbenga Ayenuro, the NANS Vice President, said this in a statement made available to newsmen in Akure on Friday.

“NANS, which has been, and will always be, at the forefront of any and every kind of exploitation of Nigerian students in any guise was relieved by the recent ban on post-UTME.

“As it was a long overdue decision to end the exploitation of prospectively- Nigerian students seeking admission.

“And it was a policy that endeared the Federal Government to the hearts of Nigerian masses; it was widely jubilated and welcomed by all concerned stakeholders in the Nigerian education sector,” he said.

According to him, it is surprising, appalling, anti-masses and unethical, for the federal government to submit to pressure from the heads of tertiary institutions by introducing the post-UTME screening fee.

He noted that the policy somersault was tantamount to the government being insensitive to the growing economic meltdown being experienced by parents and guardians of prospective students all over the country.

Ayenuro said that NANS viewed the introduction of the post-UTME screening fee as another way of extorting and exploiting potential students.

He alleged that it was another avenue of enriching management of various tertiary institutions across the length and breadth of Nigeria.

“Nigerian students can no longer keep mute in the face of the general hardship confronting the Nigerian masses.

“Our parents and guardians have become incapable of sending us stipends for our upkeep let alone of paying for our tuition fees.

“The food and provision stores in all our various campuses are undergoing abysmally low patronage from students due to the ever increasing high price tag of virtually all commodities.

“We cannot continue to keep mute while our future is being mortgaged and short changed by this present administration,’’ he alleged.

Ayenuro therefore issued a three-working day ultimatum to the ministry to reverse its decision on imposition of post-UTME screening fee as the most important stakeholder in the Nigerian education sector.

He said that failure to reverse the new policy would result in a peaceful protest at the Ministry of Education, Abuja, at a date to be announced.

(NAN)



Source
http://www.oaupeeps.com/p/blog-page_3.html

LSS Officially Joins #ReopenOAU



The Law Students Society of the Obafemi Awolowo University has officially declared their joining the ongoing online campaign to hasten the resumption process of the School. The Association made this official with a release signed by its President, Ekpa Stanley. Find the release below

IT IS TRAIT TO RESUME HOPE TO THE STUDENTS: #REOPENOAU; THE LEGAL STANDPOINT...

It is with the same degree of  deep seated pain in the heart of other students of OAU that we the entire learned populace of Ifelaw, rise to declare in absolute & firm stand, our unwavering support for the campaign for the immediate reopening of Obafemi Awolowo University for the 2015/2016 academic session.

We at OAU did the 2014 academic session in 2016, following the current crises, we are likely do do 2015 session in 2017, & we the students see this as an act of sabotage on our purported "bright" future.

We therefore, guided by the law of conscience, humbly express our articles of plea to all relevant parties involved in this crises to look up to posterity & open up doors of your heart for a peaceful resolution & sustained dialogue for better system.

We invite the Federal Government to put the interest of the students above any other reason in resolving this issue because primarily the institution exist because of the students.

All parties, the students inclusive must pursue restoring the university as a hub of innovation, a centre of excellence & a web of civility & hope for the advancement of humanity.

We enjoin students to resume writing not only on social media alone but constructive articles & letters to the editors of newspapers.

No war has ever ended without peace & dialogue, ergo, it is expedient to accept the truism that peace is superior to war but war precedes peace. We have gone to war; its time for lasting solution for resolving this crises.

Yours-in- Service for a Better Humanity,

Ekpa, Stanley Ekpa
President, IFELAW

Olagunju Aanuoluwapo
Secretary to the Society

Ogunleye Tosin
PRO

for the LAW STUDENTS' SOCIETY, OAU.


Thursday, 7 July 2016

#ReOpenOAU: See What OAU Students Are Saying

For about 24 hours now, students of Obafemi Awolowo University have occupied various social media to demand the reopening of the institution. Many of the students ended their semester exams in March and have since not returned back to school. Returning students are yet to resume for the 2015/2016 academic session as at July 2016.

Find below what OAU students are saying on Twitter. You can also make your own voice heard by following @OAUpeeps and tagging us in your tweets.



















http://www.oaupeeps.com/p/blog-page_3.html

Wednesday, 6 July 2016

OAU Students Storm Cyberspace With Resumption Plea





Several posts and hastags have started coming in over the last few hours pleading with the appropriate authorities to intervene in the restoration of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-ife to normalcy. The posts which are mostly from students of the institution have come majorly with the hashtags; #WewanttoresumeOAU and more recently #ReopenOAU.

It is worthy to note that students of the institution have been at home since April, 2016 when the Academic Staff of the institution demanded an overdue 56-day leave. However, following the protests and controversy that have trailed the process of the selection of a new Vice-Chancellor for the Institution which eventually led to the dissolution of the Governing Council of the University by Federal Government, the school was shut down indefinitely and thus students have continued to remain at home.

However, it appears that the students are tired of the too incessant and unnecessary holidays as they have started taking to the social media to vent their frustrations...

#ReopenOAU


FG, Vice Chancellors Peg Admission Screening Fee At N2,500

The Federal Ministry of Education and other stakeholders in the tertiary education sub-sector have agreed on N2,500 as the fee for post-Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) screening. This is contained in a statement issued by Prof. Michael Faborode, the Secretary-General, Association of Vice-Chancellors of Nigerian Universities (AVCNU) on Wednesday in Abuja.

Faborode said the agreement was reached after a deliberation of officials of the ministry, federal universities, polytechnics and colleges of education. The secretary-general said while it was agreed that the post-UTME screening should be sustained following the scrapping of the Computer Based Test (CBT).

“From the statement made by the Permanent Secretary, Dr Folashade Yemi-Esan at the meeting, there is no objection to screening by universities as long as it is not another CBT. “She agreed that universities should advertise and the maximum fee that should be charged for the screening should be N2,500 – bank charges inclusive.’’

According to the statement, the association will formally convey its stance to the Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu. NAN reports that Adamu’s recent announcement of the ban on post-UTME had raised a lot anxiety among stakeholders.



Source
http://www.oaupeeps.com/p/blog-page_3.html

Compliments Of The Season

As the holy month comes to an end, we pray that the blessings of Ramadan remain with you and your family. Eid Mubarak from all of us at OAU Peeps.

Ojelabi Jesujoba
For The OAU Peeps Team


Right Versus Wrong - Pope Jay


“The Problem in Nigeria is not about the north versus the south, it’s not about Christianity versus Islam, it’s not about APC versus PDP. The Problem in Nigeria is Right versus Wrong
Ben Murray-Bruce (2016)

When I first saw the theme of the Great Ife Writer essay contest 2016; “What is the Most Challenging Issue in Nigeria and how would you solve it?”, the well applauded words of the “Common Sense” advocate, Senator Ben Murray-Bruce, at the Silverbird Man of The Year 2014 were what came to mind. Many friends have asked why I did not submit an entry for the contest and my major reason was that the topic, though greatly depending on objectivity, is too subjective to just write what any judge wants.

The founder of the Silverbird group stated the problem of Nigeria to be “right versus wrong”. Very simple it appears but perhaps this statement is not as simple as it seems after all, especially considering the unending controversy that has trailed the concept of “Right versus wrong” over the centuries. From the early religious definitions of morality to the much revered work of popular philosophers and scientists (Socrates, St Augustine, Westermarck, Hobbes, Hume, Kant and a host of others), the concept of morality has remained one that no one has been able to accurately grasp. I believe the major reason for this is found in the words of the fictional character Micheal Murdock aka Daredevil (Yes, I use Netflix too), “…Sometimes the delineation between right and wrong is a sharp line, sometimes it’s a blur and often it’s like pornography; you just know when you see it…”. However, even with the impalpability of the concept of right and wrong, several human societies have been able, to a reasonable extent, to establish some codes to guide its existence in order for it to thrive. These codes are established upon different foundations depending on the type of society in question and its end goal. The Nigerian society is not excluded.


Assessing the very basis of our formation, it is not totally clear what Lugard’s true intentions were when he and Lady Shaw established the body “Nigeria”. As a matter of fact, very many speculations and opinions have trailed their decision. But still, one certainty may be deduced, especially considering other experiments of the “colonial masters”; Lugard’s actions were definitely not totally selfless. But then again, due to the incomplete determinability of what Lord Lugard’s intentions were, it is difficult to tag his actions right or wrong.

1914 is a long time ago and many decisions have been made in Nigeria and by Nigerians both right and wrong since then. Many would opine that the greatest problem facing the present day Nigeria is Corruption. Indeed! But worse, it is not just the corruption of men; I believe it is the corruption of the very Ethical codes that both make us humane and upon which our society as an institution is established. The origin of this cancerous phenomenon has been traced to a few years after independence, even though some believe it was before this time. However, over the years we have watched it spread to all arms of government and even trickle down to smaller institutions. As it stands now, the condition is so bad in some agencies that we no longer even know what is right and what is not. Any good physician knows that it is never an easy task to treat a cancer, most especially if it has become so intricate with the host. It would require very delicate treatments and care.


On a final note, ask me, “What is the most challenging Issue in Nigeria and how would you solve it?”

I will answer in my extended version of Senator Benedict Murray-Bruce’s words; “…The problem in Nigeria is Right versus Wrong and there is only one solution; we must remind ourselves which is right and which is wrong and we must tilt the balance towards the right side. It’s that simple…or complex”


Pope Jay