Crisis brews in Federal Polytechnic Ugep over appointment of Rector

From Aniekan Aniekan, Calabar

Crisis is brewing in the newly established Federal Polytechnic Ugep, in Cross River State over the planned appointment of a rector by the institution.

This follows a protest by students of the Polytechnic who staged a peaceful protest to the Governor’s Office in Calabar over an alleged move to appoint a non-indigene as rector of the institution.

The students carried various placards with inscriptions such as “Respect Catchment Area Policy,” “No to Non-Indigene Rector,” “Uphold Local Content in UGEP,” and “Our Indigene Deserves the Rector Position”.

The protesting students said they are drawing the attention of both the Federal and Cross River State governments to what they described as a deviation from the established rector selection process.

Speaking during the protest, one of the student leaders, Stephen Etem, said the Federal Government had put in place a governing council for the institution, chaired by a former senator from Cross River State, Florence Ita Giwa, with the mandate to conduct the rectorial selection exercise.

Etem explained that the process, which began last year, produced a Cross River indigene who reportedly emerged as the highest-scoring candidate during the screening and was subsequently recommended by the governing council.

He alleged that information reaching the students indicated that the name of the successful candidate, which was said to have been forwarded to the Federal Ministry of Education, might be substituted.

“Our concern is that an indigene of Cross River State emerged first in the screening exercise, yet there are indications that his name may be replaced. This goes against the principles of local content and the catchment area policy,” he said.

The students called on the Federal Government and relevant authorities to intervene to ensure that the recommendation of the governing council was upheld, warning that peace in the institution could be threatened if the process was altered.

Responding on behalf of the state government, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Intelligence, Goddie Akpama, appealed to the students to remain calm and ensure that their protest remained peaceful.

He advised the students to put their grievances in writing and channel the same through the appropriate authorities.