Mimiko pledges to restore Ondo’s lost glory in education …inaugurates panel into State-owned Polytechnic

Ondo State Governor, Dr Olusegun Mimiko last weekend reiterated his administration’s resolve to restore the State’s lost glory in the field of education with the creation and sustenance of world class tertiary education in the State as he instituted a Visitation Panel to look into the affairs of the State-owned Polytechnic, the Rufus Giwa Polytechnic, Owo.

The Governor had last month instituted a similar Visitation Panel to look into the affairs of the State-owned University, the Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko.

Mimiko while inaugurating the 10-man Panel headed by Professor A.E Akingbohunbe, a former Deputy Vice Chancellor of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, regretted the State’s lost glory in the education sector for which it was the leading light.

He, however, disclosed that his government intends to revamp the tertiary education in the State through deliberate development of the required infrastructure in the various higher institutions in the State as well as the simulation of relevant curricular that will endow students with both theoretical and practical capabilities that would make them employment generators as opposed to job seekers.

Further, the Governor disclosed that the need to enhanced both academic and non-academic staff through appropriate training and development programmes as well as emplacing an enabling institutional environment in both basic and applied researches necessitated an in-depth evaluation of the current situation in each of the tertiary institutions.

While disclosing that the Rufus Giwa Polytechnic Visitation Panel was predicated on Section 10 (1&2) Cap 137 Part III of the Rufus Giwa Polytechnic Laws, 1980, Dr Mimiko stated that the terms of the Panel include investigating the operation of all academic and part-time programmes to determine level of conformity with laid down rule and regulations, including management of funds relating thereto and compliance with admission ratio of 70/30 in favour of Science-based disciplines, to review all appointment and determine the general level of conformity of the appointments with the relevant statutes of the Polytechnic.

Others include: review the leadership profile/quality of the institution including the process for the appointment and roles of the Governing Board, the Rector and other Principal Officers and determine the extent of commitment to laid-down procedures;

Investigate the application of funds in the polytechnic, examine the law establishing the institution and see in what ways the law has been observe, determine the extent to which the Polytechnic is fulfilling its mandate and what requires to be done to turn it into a fully functional Polytechnic and advise on all other aspects of the institution considered to be of interest to both the Visitor and the public and to the attainment of the objectives for which the Polytechnic was set up.

The Panel has four weeks to submit its report