News Rendezvous

• Contract for 5 Megawatts of Solar Farm Already Awarded
• MAU to Graduate 5545 Students

The Vice Chancellor of Modibbo Adama University Yola, Prof Liman Tukur, says he is proud to have transformed the institution from a struggling university into a fully functional conventional university offering new courses including medical sciences, law and will soon begin degree courses in nursing.

Tukur said, although the institution began as a science and technology based institution, most of the universities struggled with funding as there were no specific funding meant to support the science and technology initiatives across all the universities of technologies in the country

Prof. Tukur made this known at a pre- convocation press conference of the 28th Convocation ceremony held at the Modibbo Adama University in Yola, Adamawa state.

Tukur, while giving a preview of the 28th Convocation ceremony and an account of his five year in office said, the
convocation lecture will be delivered by Prof. Saibou Issa of the University of Maroua, Cameroon and that the institution is set to graduate about 5545 students with diplomas, degrees, and other higher certificates.

He said, the university as a growing institution is working towards building a sustainable electricity power baseto drive the university’s mission as it has already awarded a contract and acquire a sute for the building of solar farm to provide the institution with a 5 Megawatts Solar power.

Speaking on the achievements recorded within his term as the vice Chancellor, Liman Tukur said, “I took over the affairs of the university in June, 2019; three years after the delisting of all courses in the then School of Management and Information Technology (SMIT) and students admission dwindling to all time low. Thus, to ensure that the university not only survives but also remains relevant to local and regional challenges as captured in our Vision and Mission Statement, we strategically and systematically embarked on a rebranding drive that saw to the successful conversion of the university from a forced narrow path to its current conventional broad-based status.

“That seemingly impossible feat was achieved in less than two years of our coming on board. With this feat, we were able to direct our focus on key components of the university.

“Our pledge under this component of the university system was to strive to restore lost programmes (School of Management and Information Technology), introduce new ones (Medical Sciences), diversify the Open and Distance Learning Mode and provide functional Entrepreneurial Training Centre.

“We are not only happy but proud of our strides under this target mission. With the ‘return’ of SMIT as Faculty of Social and Management Sciences, we have fully recovered all hitherto delisted programmes and those that were lost due to denied accreditation (Banking and Finance, Building, and Civil Engineering). We have also added to the Faculty of Social and Management Sciences, Political Science and Sociology.

“The College of Medical Sciences has been established with fully developed pre-clinical site, significant structures in the Clinical Site adjoining the Modibbo Adama University Teaching Hospital (MAUTH) along with a one billion Naira Pediatric Centre of Excellence within the MAUTH.

“Three sets of MBBS students have already been matriculated and we are at the verge of bringing on board Nursing Programme; staff are on ground and the NUC already invited to give the go ahead for commencement.

“The Faculty of Law is another welcome addition, with three departments ready to receive the National Universities Commission on Resource Verification visit to pave way for admissions. The Law Faculty complex is certainly a beauty to behold.”

Speaking on the 28th Convocation Ceremony, he said, “This year, we are graduating the 2022/2023 Academic Session students with a few from the previous session who could not make it to the last convocation.

“During the convocation, we shall graduate a total of 5,545 candidates in all. A breakdown of which indicates that, we are awarding 458 Diplomas, and of the 4282 in the Bachelor’s Degree category, we shall award 53 first class, 1,143 second class upper, 2,376 second class lower, 682 third class and 28 pass degrees.

“While for Higher Degrees, we shall award 41 Postgraduate Diplomas, 630 Masters Degrees and 134 Ph.Ds. in various disciplines.”

With respect to Staff development, training and promotions he said, “We have ensured the ascension of 58 Professors and 40 Associate Professors among many others in the lower cadres and across professional fields in the University.”

“The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) facilitated the siting of a DNA Forensic Laboratory, the first of its kind in the North East, located at our Chevron Biotechnology Centre.

“The Nigeria Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) has established a Centre of Excellence to advance studies in the areas of Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) with a director already appointed for the Centre.”

Tukur said, the university has also gone into partnerships with universities in Zambia, Czech university and other universities within the country in order to foster learning and gain new ideas to strengthen learning in the institution.

The university Don however decried that the removal of fuel subsidy, the hike in electricity tariff and the floating of the naira has crippled most Nigerian universities and that in the nearest future, unless something is done quickly, most Nigerian institutions would not be able to afford electricity and water for its students.

He also criticized the Single Treasury Account as an administrative nightmare to university administration and that it most be addressed in order to give education a boost in the country.

He commended president Bola Ahmed Tinubu for exempting universities from the IPPIS and from the requirement to get approval from the office of the SGF for staff recruitment.

He then announced that, the 28th Convocation Lecture will be delivered by Prof. Saibou Issa of the University of Maroua, Cameroon as the instruction kick-starts activities building up to the convocation ceremony.