This Is The Original Story As Published By The Sun That Caused Me My Job Without Fair Hearing Though

STUDYING UNDER THE TREES

The pitiable story of Oko Polytechnic Staff School

 principal

The Million naira question: Did a philanthropist truly give N20m to build a befitting structure for Oko Polytechnic Staff School?

By

Emeka Odogwu

Oko Polytechnic Staff School is by, any standard, an eyesore. All you need in order to con­firm Ibis fact is (o take a long look at the dilapidated structures, the peeling walls, the gaping and caving ceil­ings, the dilapidated And stinking toilets and of course, those students over there studying under the trees.

 

It was such an embarrassing situation that moved some members of the staff to write the Rector, Prof. Godwin Onu, through the Act­ing Principal, Mr. S.C Awgu, a letter dated 26th September, 2013 and entitled; "Your Staff School in Distress." In the letter, the staff referred the Rector to letters they had written earlier, on 26th August and 13th Sep­tember, 2013, to draw his attention to these problems as well as to the non-payment of their salaries and non-regularization of their salary structure.

 

“We have not been paid since July 2013 and since October 2012 we are yet to receive the subvention for last academic session,” a part of the letter read. "We urgently need a re-roofing of one of the classrooms which caved in and leaks very badly as it cannot ac­commodate our new intake. We need extra classrooms. We seek your approval to col­lect lab equipment from Ufuma campus of the Polytechnic. We need fund for running the schools. We need some stationery such as black board, chalks, stencil, ink, ribbons and sports equipment etc which are not available in the school store. We need computer sys­tems for the schools. The above are problems that demand urgent attention. As things stand now, the school has run out of every material necessary to run a school. Please, sir, come to our aid.”

Perhaps, something may eventually come out of the letter but so far nothing really earth moving or shaking has happened. A staff who does not want her name in print alleged that there seemed to be a grand design by a for­mer Vice President of Nigeria to ensure that the staff school does not exist so that it does not continue to pose a challenge to a popular school near the Polytechnic owned and man­aged by his wife but another staff dismissed the allegation with a wave of hand and insisted that the staff school's misfortune has nothing to do with the former Vice President

The N20m Donation

The Founder of the Polytechnic staff school, Dr U.C Nzewi, is said to be an un­happy man as the baby he gave birth to, has continued to crawl 13 years after. During the first Ekwueme lecture series in 201 f founded by Prof Godwin Onu, a multi-billionaire busi­nessman and philanthropist. Chief Jona Eze, from Umunze, Orumba South Local Govern­ment Area, was said to have given the institu­tion N20 million to end the lamentation for a permanent structure or permanent site. About three years later, there is nothing on ground to show that the dream is about being actual­ized except allegations, denials and counter-allegations.

A concerned staff said: “Till today, we don't know what happened to it aside the numerous intimidation, harassment and suppression of staff. There is no laboratory here, no facilities for practical. Staffs spend their own money to do practical in the Polytechnic laboratory because they demand money from us. That is why in JSS 1 and SSS 1, we would have had many students intake but before they reach JSS 3 and SSS 3, they would desert the school having discovered its emptiness. Even the entrepreneur courses we'd not been able to introduce because of the situation. We have nothing to boast of, as disappointed parents daily withdraw their wards because of lack of amenities and it is not funny at all.”head mistress

Three officers of the school who spoke to Education Review, all lamented the pitiable state of the staff school. “We are, at pres­ent, operating from a rented building. No doors, no windows, no louvers and no electricity in school,” one of them said. "No fence around the compound. You can imagine the safety of the school property and those of the pupils/students. Therefore, security is porous and the faith of our newly recruited teachers is in jeopardy. Help us so that we can help our children. The schools have been properly registered and approved. Adequate and qualified teachers have been recruited for the three arms of the schools, although some have not been paid due to some technical reasons.”

State of Infrastructures

A visit to the schools showed its sorry stale. Some students were seen busy writing examination under some trees, while others were busy reading while some were playing. The Acting Principal, Mr. Awgu, later confirmed that students study un­der the trees for lack of space. Others were seen outside me classroom studying in some of the cor­ridors of the classrooms. The school used to have nursery, primary and secondary sections, all located in one uncompleted three storey building at a bus stop behind Eke Oko before the secondary section was moved to a place before the main gate of the Polytechnic, right behind the Polytechnic medical centre. Right now, the nursery and primary sections are without fence and boast of one outdated pit toi­let for the innocent children and their teachers.

When this reporter visited the secondary section, smartly dressed students were busy writing exams in congested classrooms while others were doing the same under the trees. Being a hot afternoon, students under the trees were, obviously, enjoying the cool breeze blowing on their races and bodies, while their colleagues inside suffered from intense heat. But the students were so cultured and disci­plined that throughout my stay none of them loi­tered about or went outside the gate. Their teachers were busy supervising or marking their scripts and attending to their needs. But the toilet filled with human wastes and oozing out a strong nauseating stench and which attracted with it, swarms of big, green flies buzzing about and piercing here and there, made quite an unsightly scene. The only abandoned water closet is nothing to write home about

There was not a single textbook in the library and no seats for the reading tables and in the makeshift laboratory, there was no chemical. The classrooms and labs as well as the library and offices have no fans, no lights, no toilets while in some places their ceilings are almost caving in. On the day this re­porter visited, the classrooms were jam-packed especially the JSS I class and some sweaty odour could be perceived wafting from the class due to congestion and poor ventilation.

 

A visit to the Nursery Section

But for the headmistress, nursery section, Mrs. Okoli Susan, everything is "just fine." The woman who insisted that only the Rector, Registrar, the PRO or management staff can speak on the mat­ter, pleaded with Education Review: "Please, 1 don't want to talk on this but the only thing I am suggest­ing or requesting is that there should be a befitting environment to perform because we are dealing with human beings and motivation is key to good delivery of knowledge.”

Full of apprehension, she was constantly asking if the reporter was directed to come to her by any superior staff, pointing out that granting press inter­view, no matter how short, is capable of pitching the staff against the management and the loser, at the end of the day, will be the staff. She therefore declined further comment.

But another staff in the nursery section who did not want her name to be mentioned said: "Our building is not in the best of shape as you can see. Il is not befitting our name as Polytechnic staff school but in I am sure the Rector may have concluded plans to change our fortune. Here is not the perma­nent site, it is down there. We were even lucky that somebody from Umunze, Chief Eze, gave N20m to the Polytechnic to build an ultra modem staff school. The foundation has already been laid and work is ongoing. We were all there when the man came with his family. So you have seen that we are not going to be here forever, although there is rumour they have diverted the fund to some other things, while others said they used it on some other things outside what the donor wanted. Our environ­ment is not conducive, and our population is reduc­ing by the day. I am pleading that we be moved to where we truly deserve.”

Situation report from the Primary Section

Al the primary section, Mrs. Ezeanata Flora .U. the headmistress, strongly lamented the situation of the school. I don't know where you are corning from but only the truth can set us free at all times. You have seen the wonderful environment we are in but our consolation is that the teachers despite the humiliation and deprivation of their rights are dedicated and committed to seeing to the future of these children. The pupils are doing great. But sometimes when you look at some parents coming to drop or pick their children, you could see anger boldly written on their faces. They may endure for a term but by the following term they would change schools for their kids. If we are in the right environ­ment we are supposed to be, we would be having more population and more teachers.

“We have 91 pupils here now but before now we used to have over 200 pupils until parents, out of frustration, started taking their kids elsewhere. Again, the treatment to staff by managers of the school is demoralizing because as a teacher you need to be happy to give your best but here every­body is unhappy and yet they strive to give their best. Most of the children of our staff we have here are the ones whose parents are low income earners while the staff in the higher income cadre prefer to take their children to Gaius Benton Memorial Schools.”

On N20m donation, she confirmed that “one man brought N20m and foundation for the staff school was laid because the man was emphatic that the money is for a staff school to be named after him. The man came with his wife to the foundation laying ceremony and promised to augment the money if it is not enough and we were pleased that soonest we would be relocated. Is this environment befitting of a Polytechnic Staff school?”

Oko Polytechnic Management's Reaction

The Public Relations Officer, (PRO), of Oko Polytechnic (Okopoly), Obini Onuchukwu Obini, was anxious to react to what he sees as unfounded allegations fly­ing about concerning the N20m donation by Chief Eze.

In a chat with Education Review, he said: "The staff school we met on ground was in a terrible condition although the management of the institution lies fully in the hands of the management board of the school headed by one Dr. Ubaka. As for the N20 million donated by Chief Jo­nah Eze, the money was not meant for the Polytechnic staff school but was donated with a specific instruction from the donor to build a standard international second­ary school of which plans have reached advanced stage for the commencement of the construction. So far a choice loca­tion has been made and architectural plan drawn up and work will commence on it soon. The staff school should rally round and generate their own money because the Chief Jonah Eze's money they are looking at, came as a result of the sole effort of the Rector. So, they should go out and look for their own money.

“What we are even expecting is for the school to get more IGR (Internally Gener­ated Revenue) to make up because we have a policy here against abandoned project. It would be a surprise to hear that anybody in the school would be talking down on the efforts of the Rector, Prof Godwin Onu, to transform the institution's entire environ­ment.

“It is on record that, infrastructure-wise, the management of Federal Polytechnic, Oko, Polytechnic is constructing no fewer than 17 structures and none is less than two-storey building and they are going on simultaneously. Six structures have been completed and virtually all the structures on the campus have been comprehensively renovated. Landscaping and beautification has remained the watchword of the Rec­tor who have turned the environment into a citadel of learning, an envy of others.

“And these attracted commendation from the Senate Committee Chairman on Education, Senator Uche Chukwumerije, during his oversight function visit to Oko. He said and I quote: 'Federal Polytechnic, Oko, remains the fastest-growing institution in the country.” Apart from infrastructure, the Rector has done five kilometers of roads in Atani and Oko campuses. The Rector has magnanimously sponsored the training of not less than 250 staff of the Polytechnic with majority of them, about 200, studying abroad under TETFUND project. The aim is for them to study and improve the environment. All these are geared towards our long agitation for change of status into a Federal University of Technology. And at this point we do not think that distraction from the staff school is ideal. The Rector has received commen­dations from several quarters including the host community, Oko, for his wonderful performance.

“The school is managed by one Dr Uba­ka as I said earlier and Oko Polytechnic and we spend about NIO million on yearly basis to remedy the rickety condition of the school. They keep losing their staff and students because they are not teaching and have come to blame the Polytechnic. The other day the Rector visited the school on inspection, they were taken unawares because many of the teachers were not in school. Their environment is far from us. The problems of the school had been there before we came on board. They had been folding their hands waiting for the Poly­technic to carry their burden but we don't have the money to throw around because we have our own challenges.”

Disappointment and More Lamenta­tions

On hearing this, the Acting Principal, Mr. Awgu said “Why should somebody say that we are independent when my secretary and Senior Igbo teacher are from the Polytechnic, on secondary posting.”

Awgu who lamented the state of the school, added: “At a time the ceilings were caving in and the students were complain­ing to me but I asked them to march to “Aso Rock” and put their complaint across to the Rector. They went but I was black­mailed for that. I was summoned. When 1 came I was asked to deny sending the stu­dents but I maintained I sent them since 1 have met with the Rector, Prof Onu, and he promised to marble the classrooms. I in­sisted it may not be necessary as what we need is putting the structures in good or­der by re-roofing them and giving us more space because there is congestion already, until we move to the permanent site but up till today nothing has happened.

“Whenever it rains, the students are in trouble but what do we do as every little thing attracts threats and harassment. My interest is that the school should be put in good order because we are not interested in the allegations that we are sabotaging the system. I didn't request for this job and there is nothing in it to die for. They can take it if they want but let them pay us all that they owe us.”

Another concerned staff added: "We have never had a full-fledged Principal but acting Principals for a long time. This is not good for a Federal government estab­lishment. The first Principal, Mr. Ebele Ehichianya, acted from 2003 to 2012. He was removed unceremoniously for asking about the N20 million donated by Chief Eze and, Mr. Stephen Awgu, appointed in acting capacity. But they are regretting appointing the man because the man can­not tolerate their excesses. That has been the bane of the growth of the school. We are over 600 students in each new session but before you say Jack Robinson, parents and guardians have come to withdraw their children and wards without notice, hav­ing seen they are retrogressing rather than growing academically. We had expected Prof Onu to tackle it in the past four years but nothing much has been done. Maybe he is going to do something now that he has been reappointed.

"This is supposed to be the school with the highest population of students around here but it is not. The children of staff pay N7,500 while those of non-staff pay N8.000. Our typing is done outside because we are using manual typewriters which is now unserviceable. Our popula­tion was 420 but now it is 282 because of the environment. It is unbelievable that students here study outside the classroom, in the corridors and under the trees. There is not even a single textbook in the library, no chemical in the labs, yet we are sup­posed to be a staff school.”

Note: Sun Newspaper adapted part of the story I did but made mistake of using my bye line which was capitalized by Obini Onuchukwu in writing his petition against me alleging bias against them among other allegations. Is it not talking from both sides of his mouth? I was bitter to have my name in Sun when I am not working with them. The guy who made the mistake has apologized to me and I accepted his apology but the punishment from my office was too heavy. But there is God. A sack for the first mistake? Please judge me and Oko Polytechnic PRO Obini Onuchukwu because the Rector is being pushed into this mess, I presume?