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From LAYI OLANREWAJU, Ilorin
Management of the Kwara State Polytechnic, Ilorin (Kwarapoly) has raised alarm over encroachment of its land by suspected land grabbers in the state.
Speaking with journalists in Ilorin on Tuesday on the sideline of the institution’s 28th convocation ceremony, the rector, Engineer Abdul Jimoh Mohammed, said that 41 per cent of its land areas had been encroached upon.
“The Polytechnic is currently occupying 6 percent of its land
mass. 41percent of the entire land mass has been encroached in such a way that it enveloped the 6percent.
“The remaining 53 percent is not accessible because the Polytechnic
will have to pass through the encroached portion before it can access the virgin land”, he said.
To check the development, the rector said that the management had commenced siting some new projects on some encroachment prone areas and virgin land areas of the polytechnic.
The rector said that the institution is also collaborating with the state’s ministry of Tertiary Education and the state government, who he said had already set up committee on encroachment of lands belonging to state owned schools in the state.
He also said that the institution had signed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with three indigenous industrial companies in its collaboration to encourage students’ practical skills.
The companies, according to the rector, are Prototype Engineering Development Institute, Ilesha, Federal Institute of Industrial Research (FIIRO), Oshodi and Mantrac CAT, Ikeja, Lagos.
He said that the aim was to make students relevant professionally where they find themselves in future on knowledge of heavy duty equipment, marine, agric and mining industries, as well as make them employers of labour.
The rector also said that a total of eight staff of the institution were sacked over certificate racketeering, adding that some staff were also sacked over presentation of fake certificate and fake results for employment, “just as some were demoted over one offence or the other”, he said.
Kwarapoly helmsman also said that the institution currently offers a total of 56 programmes and four new ones, namely Nutrition Science, Library Science
Mechatronics and Food Science and Technology.
For the 28th convocation ceremony of the polytechnic, a total number of 62 students bagged distinction at the HND level just as 56 students had distinction at the OND level.While total students to graduate are 7,781.
