Relocation of Abia varsity law faculty begins June – Govt * To hold CBT for new teachers * Bans all charges as free education begins

Relocation of Abia varsity law faculty begins June – Govt

* To hold CBT for new teachers

* Bans all charges as free education begins

By Steve Oko

UMUAHIA – Abia State Government has said there is no going back on its directive to relocate the Law Faculty of the Abia State University Uturu, ABSU, from Umuahia back to the main campus at Uturu.

This was one of the outcomes of the State Executive Council meeting held Monday, according to the Commissioner for Information, Prince Okey Kanu.

Kanu who addressed newsmen in Umuahia, gave June as the commencement date for the relocation exercise, explaining that Government relaxed the earlier date to enable students round off their exams and end the current semester.

He said:”The movement before now was hampered by a number of reasons ranging from student examinations to issues of processes, procedures and logistics. The Umuahia campus also had some accreditation matters to deal with before the movement to Uturu.

“So as a right thinking government and one that listens to it’s citizens, the government allowed the Umuahia campus to deal with some of these issues while engaging in infrastructural upgrade needed to make the movement back to Uturu seamless and worthwhile.”

The Commissioner announced that the commitment so far demonstrated by the state government to transform the institution, had resulted into a surge in the students’ population.

According to him the university has recorded 48 per cent increase in its admissions in the current academic session due to the ongoing transformation in the institution.

” ABSU admitted 6,246 fresh students into the first year in this session alone”, he said.

He added: “That is a 48% increase over last year’s figure of 4,196. Interestingly, the quotas for Law, Medicine & Surgery, Pharmacy and Nursing Sciences were not exceeded; a situation that speaks to the new culture of governance and administrative discipline currently obtainable across government institutions in Abia state”.

The Commissioner further stated that the free education policy of the State Government had fully commenced, resulting into exponential growth in pupils’ enrollment into public schools.

This, he explained, gave rise for the need to recruit additional 2,500 teachers in the state.

The Commissioner who reinforced the ban on collection of charges/fees under any guise in public schools in the state, said that any school head caught collecting levies from students would be sanctioned.

Kanu who said school heads no longer had justification to collect charges in schools as Gov. Alex Otti had approved monthly imprests for them, urged parents and guardians to report anyone still levying students.

He re-emphasised that pupils from primary school to students in junior secondary three are not supposed to pay any type of fees including “PTA fees, sports fees among others”.

Meanwhile, the Commissioner for Basic Education, Elder Godwin Ubochi, who was also at the press briefing, gave March 6, and 7, as dates for the Computer- Based -Test (CBT) for the ongoing teachers recruitment exercise.

Ubochi who had earlier in a statement explained that the change in the initial date was due to delays in securing CBT centres, said the exercise would hold in two centres in all three senatorial zones in the state.

He re-stated Government’s commitment to “utmost transparency” in the exercise, insisting that it will be based only on merit and competence.

According to his earlier statement, persons with disabilities (PWDs), would not be subjected to the CBT but would be drafted in for oral test.

The Commissioner explained that only successful candidates in the CBT would be invited for the oral interview which would serve as the final phase of the recruitment process.

“Shortlisted candidates are to access the recruitment portal on the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education website (www.mobse-abiastategov.ng) for more details”, the statement read in part.

 

Steve Oko, Publisher/C.E.O, WaWa News Global. For more information on advert placement and news coverage, contact us on: 08038725600, or via email stevemanofgod2000@yahoo.com; wawanewsglobal@gmail.com Always read WaWa News Global - Your most dependable online news platform for the latest breaking news in Nigeria.

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