By Ikechukwu Odu
NSUKKA—-The Vice Chancellor of the Enugu State University of Science and Technology, ESUT, Professor Aloysius-Michaels Okolie, and the Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, Professor Is-haq Oloyede, Friday, urged 4,000 students admitted into various degree programmes in the University to report lecturers involved in sexual harassment of students for appropriate disciplinary actions.
The Vice Chancellor who equally urged the students to be good ambassadors of their respective families, also warned them to eschew impersonation during examinations or involvement in admission racketeering and other forms of forgeries to escape expulsion from the University.
He made the call at the 41st matriculation ceremony of the University at Agbani, Enugu State, where he equally warned the students to abstain from cultism and other anti-social behaviours such as armed robbery, gansterism, drug abuse, sexual harrassment, forgery of receipts or academic documents among other vices.
“Any student implicated in any of the above vices will be shown the exit door, or his or her name will be published in the media and will in addition be handed over to the police and other law enforcement agencies for further action. Recently, seven students, including two officials of the newly elected Students Union Government, SUG, were apprehended in the University by the police while they were trying to initiate some people into cultism. The University Management acted promptly by suspending them indefinitely until their cases were fully investigated by the police. We shall not relent in our resolve to rid the University of unwanted elements,” he warned.
While assuring the students of adequate security on campus, he equally urged them to strive for academic excellence, adding that students who score a Cumulative Grade Point Average, CGPA of 4.50 or above in their first year and maintain a CGPA of 4.0 in subsequent years are offered scholarship to study without payment of fees until they graduate.
While speaking on his administration since inception of duty as the Vice Chancellor of ESUT, he maintained that the mission and vision for the University has been clear.
“Our mission is to re-invent the University on the part of excellence and bring it to global recognition. Our vision remains to rebrand, remodel and create a new ESUT that is competitive, alluring, friendly, service-oriented, viable, visible and first choice University.
“For these positive changes to be realized, a lot of energy, sacrifice, reorientation resources and commitment are required by all stakeholders including the students.
“Restated therefore, this administration is very keen to restore the old values envisaged by the founding fathers with the purpose of making ESUT a first-class and highly competitive University with administrative and academic excellence comparable to other global and top-class Universities,” he said.
Also in his remarks, the Registrar of the JAMB, Professor Oloyede, while congratulating the new students, urged them to shun all forms of malpractices in the University.
The Registrar who was represented by the South East Zonal Director of JAMB, Ebere Chris-Okeke, also urged the students to shun bad gangs, cultism and drug abuse so as to graduate in flying colours and make their families proud.
Some of the matriculating students, including Damian Eze of Civil Engineering Department and John-Goodness Eze, of Political Science Department, who addressed pressmen, expressed joy over their admissions into the University, pledging to be studious and exemplary in their dispositions.
The ceremony was attended by all the Principal and key Officers of ESUT including, the Deputy Vice Chancellor, Prof Chike Nwoha; the Registrar, Mr Ambrose G Ugwu; the University Librarian, Dr Jonas Ezema; and the Bursar, Dr Augustine Ojeh; among others.
