Academic activities grounded at FCET Akoka as provost, staff fight over tenure elongation

The long-standing impasse between the Provost of the Federal College of Education, Technical (FCET), Akoka Dr. Wahab Azeez and the staff over the provost’s tenure have grounded academic activities. There have been rifts between the provost and staff bordering on welfare of the staff, promotion and sponsorship for further education before the climax of tenure […]

The long-standing impasse between the Provost of the Federal College of Education, Technical (FCET), Akoka Dr. Wahab Azeez and the staff over the provost’s tenure have grounded academic activities.

There have been rifts between the provost and staff bordering on welfare of the staff, promotion and sponsorship for further education before the climax of tenure elongation, 

which led to protest students and staff going rampart to disrupt activities in the school.  

A senior staff of one of the unions in colleges of education who do not want to be named told Daily Trust that the issues has been ongoing and after various interventions failed, the staff decided to do it their way.

• You have no right to destabilise Nigeria, Akpabio warns Protesters
• There’s No more need for protest – FG

According to him, the staff have been engaging in peaceful protest over time now following the refusal of the provost to vacate office after expiration of five years.

He said: “The provost’ tenure of four years ended on 26th May 2023 and before then, he secretly went through the Presidency and got a letter of elongation and hid it. Afterall, the Federal Colleges of Education Act provided that additional months should be added to his to complete five year, which elapsed in May 2024, he refused to go and to complete eight years.”

Meanwhile, with the amendment of the Federal Colleges of Education Act, 1998 in 2023, which stipulates a single, non-renewable five-year term for provosts of Federal Colleges of Education, animosity has been brewing over the interpretation of the amended Act on the provost of FCET Akoka.

This hostility has turned the serenity that spread across the premise to a battle ground as the workers, operating under the aegis of the Joint Action Committee, comprising academic and non-academic staff refused to allow the provost access to his office.

The staff have been embroiled in rage against their provost, alleging unlawful stay in office, claiming it was against the Act governing Federal Colleges across the country.

Daily Trust gathered that Azeez assumed office as the 12th provost for a four-year tenure in May 2019 and got his tenure renewed for another four-year in May 2023.

However, before the expiration of the Azeez’s first tenure, the Federal Colleges of Education Act, 1998 was amended in 2023, stipulating a single, non-renewable five-year term for provosts of Federal Colleges of Education and came into effect in June 2023.

According to a statement issued by the Ministry’s Legal Unit on May 23, 2024, the amended Act stipulates a single, non-renewable five-year term for provosts of Federal Colleges of Education. This provision is aimed at standardising tenure across institutions and ensuring a clear succession plan.

The statement highlighted key provisions of the Act, including the single term of five years as per section 13(6) of the amended Act, meaning provosts are now limited to a single term of five years without the possibility of renewal. Transitional arrangements under section 13(7) address the status of Provosts appointed before the Act was enacted. Specifically, provosts with less than five years in office will serve a single term of five years, regardless of their original appointment terms. Those serving a second term at the time the Act was enacted will complete their current four-year term without any extension.

More interpretations were provided. For provosts who had not completed their first four-year term before the Act’s enactment, an additional year is added to make it a five-year term, with no option for renewal. For provosts re-appointed for a second four-year term before the Act’s commencement, this term will be their final one, and they will not transition to a five-year term.

Daily Trust gathered that the interpretation of the Act has eroded sanity and erupted commotion as the provost insisted on continuing with a second term having completed five years, which a clause of the Act stipulated while the union refused and insisted he must go.

A Senior staff of the college said the union had given a directive to the directors and heads of departments not to take instructions from the provost as he is no longer in power and went ahead to lock up his office.

 “The concerned staff as they tagged themselves have remained peaceful all through the process but the provost kept bringing security agents to harass and arrest them but they refused to give in,” he said.

He said: “The same provost had also denied the renewal of the tenure of the registrar last year November after they all pleaded on her behalf, he said it is against the law and refused and little did he know the law will also catch up with him now.”

According to him, the newly inaugurated council came for their inaugural meeting and tried to resolve the matter, but the staff refused to open the office of the provost. As a result, the Council Chairman asked him to excuse them and leave his deputy since they want to discuss his matter.

“The next thing, he went out and returned with DSS officials and they started arresting leaders of the movement and throwing tear gas. So, as the students saw their colleagues falling, they went on rampage and started destroying properties, in fact all  official vehicles on sight were destroyed,” he said.

Also, findings showed that the college’ Student Union Government (SUG), began a protest over poor hostel accommodation and lack of issuance of certificates to students who had graduated five years ago days before the last unfortunate incident.

During the students’ agitation on Monday, it coincided with the visit of officials of the Ministry of Education to inaugurate a new council for the institution. The SUG said the aftermath of the inauguration went sour as violence erupted when the provost in a bid to calm the nerves of the students’ outburst called police officers from Area C.

One of the workers who pleaded anonymity accused the provost of poor management, saying that the administrative function of the school has not been effective since he assumed office.

“Even the five years he used, everything was grounded, the vehicles and even the hostels were messed up.  In the hostel, students are buying a potty for the toilet and they pay the range between N30,000- N50,000 per room.”

“So when we try to fight this man, he is trying to use Abuja to fight us back,” he said.

He added that the tenure elongation fuelled the crisis in the school, saying the workers have fallen out of love with the provost over his insistence to remain in office.

“By the Act, he was supposed to step aside. We believe that he used money to bribe his way in Abuja so that they will give him an extra three years to use eight years,” he said.

He disclosed that the resolution of the new council was for the provost to stay in his office for one month, saying that he refused.

“When the council came, we told the council about our solutions and promised to see to it.

So the council told the provost to act for one month from 9am-5pm except Saturdays and Sundays but he refused.

“What happened yesterday (Monday) is that the students during the inauguration of the new 12 members of the council said the provost should go back to his house so that he is not needed. Students have passed from this college for the past five years without a certificate and the registrar said he has signed the certificates but the provost has not signed and delayed the students because to whom it concerns has an expiring date,” he said.

Students call FG to resolve lingering issue 

Oluwatoyin Damilare, a final year student in the Automobile department has expressed dismay over the use of enforcement agency against the student’s peaceful protest, saying the lingering issue will extend the time he is supposed to finish.

“We saw some policemen firing teargas and shooting. They said they came to stop the protest. I feel really bad. I am in my final year. We were supposed to end everything about this school next month but I am not sure we can still finish at the slated time.

“So, now we have to go home and we don’t even know when the school is going to reopen again. We want the government to really investigate the case because we were doing a peaceful protest before they came around,” he said.

Also, a final year student in the Agricultural Education department, who does not want his name published, called on the federal government to wade in and resolve the issue.

“The whole protest started last week until the day police came. That was when it started and it is kind of funny. It will definitely affect a lot of us academically. We are supposed to finish by the end of August or first week of September, we are supposed to be done and a lot of us might have goals that by September or October, we are supposed to be doing this or that.

“But now, everything is cut short. You now have to wait till when this will end. I want the government to investigate and reopen the school,” he said.

Reaction of Union

A senior member of Colleges of Education, who pleaded anonymity, said the school is notorious and have refused to follow the logical way to resolve the issue because they believed that power has been compromised

He however expressed confidence in the Council Chairman, Chief Adeniyi Adenuga to resolve the issue saying, he is a good man and he has secure the release of the staff arrested and working to restore peace in the college