Akwa Ibom State University AKSU Ikot Akpaden, has been described as a high rising university of destination in Nigeria in terms of structural facilities, academic programmes and up-to-date equipment made available barely one year of Prof. Eno Ibanga as the Vice Chancellor.
With about six thousand student population from all the catchment areas within and outside Nigeria, the university which changed from University of Science and Technology to a conventional university in line with the government transformation policy, focuses not just on Technological and Applied Sciences but also Arts. It operates two campuses in Ikot Akpaden in Mkpat Enin Local Government Area, as main campus and Obio Akpa in Oruk Anam, as the second campus.
Founded in 2004 by Arc Obong Victor Attah, the pioneer students were actually admitted in 2010/2011 academic year.
AKSU runs six Faculties evenly spread across the two campuses at Ikot Akpaden and Obio Akpa. The faculties are, Faculty of Natural and Applied Sciences, Agriculture and, Faculty of Social and Management Sciences. Others are Faculty of Engineering, Education and Faculty of Arts.
In a no holds barred chat with members of the press who called on him in his office, the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Eno Ibanga disclosed that barely one year in office, he has achieved so much for the university in terms of infrastructural renaissance and up to date facilities that stands the university out amongst its contemporaries like the Cross River State University of Technology (CRUTECH) Calabar, Gombe State University and Kaduna State University all founded in the same 2004 and even threatening to dwarf older universities like UniUyo and Unical by the accelerated development.
According to the Vice Chancellor, the Theatre Arts structure, Language Laboratory, TV Studio and the Print and Photographic studios of the Mass Communications Department at Obio Akpa combine to make the university one of the best in Nigeria that can compete favourably with its international counterparts.
He promised to provide more laboratories and offices for Social Sciences and to address some of the issues demanded in 2015 by the Accreditation Team and to speedily complete the ongoing four storey block with lift at the main campus, that will accommodate the Vice Chancellor, the Senate and the principal officers who currently have no befitting offices. From what he said, the projects would be ready within three months from now for the governor to commission pending next accreditation in year 2019.
Further more, the resuscitation of the Palm Oil Processing and the Feed Mills by the university will put the institution on industrial path to impact the state economically with its products of improved feeds for poultry and animals, quality palm oil as well as creating employment opportunities for the youths.
Reacting to questions on sources of fund and fiscal discipline in execution of projects, the Vice Chancellor explained that the paucity of funds released to the university has forced management to rely on Internally Generated Revenue IGR, to execute projects, and to save costs, prefers direct labour, reasoning that, “the university as a repository of knowledge can use its architects and artisans to design and execute standard projects”.
Prof. Ibanga however seized the opportunity to debunk allegation of misappropriation of budgetary allocation to the university and declared that, he as a Vice Chancellor cannot approve money without the consent of the University Council, revealing that prior to his assumption as Vice Chancellor, nobody talked about IGR in the university for seven years.
The Vice Chancellor who declined the honour of chieftaincy by a host community of the university on religious grounds, used the opportunity to send a clear message and signal to all detractors of his stand against self aggrandising frivolities to divert funds. “I came to serve AKSU and not share money, I will plough all accruing funds into the development of the University to international standard and provide structures and facilities that people and generations yet unborn will come to see”, noting that, “Obio Akpa was an existing university till my coming, no structure was added to it”.
Prof Ibanga, rated the university as peaceful, high in academic and moral standards, raising students worthy in character and learning with solid experience to go into any area of endeavour.
He acknowledged strict discipline across the board to ensure that the image and integrity of the university keep soaring above all.
He thanked the state government for always helping the university to settle salaries of workers promptly and appealed for release of more funds to clear outstanding arrears owed to some categories of staff.
On challenges facing the university, the Vice Chancellor pointed out paucity of funds as principal challenge which has constrained him to work within the budget at this time of recession, compelling him to prudently utilise the IGR to run what he described as “the least paying state institution that has emerged as Destination University”, while praying for the economy to improve to enable government adequately cater for the needs of the university. Other area of needs he mentioned, were the total absence of official cars and befitting offices for the principal officers.
He therefore called for synergy between the university and the media to create awareness amongst the political class in the state and national assemblies on the need to locate some of their constituency projects in the university to help further the course of education in the state.
