THE FORUM OF PAST AND PRESENT ALVAN STUDENTS GOVERNMENT LEADERS DRUMS SUPPORT FOR PROF. NGOZI STELLA LEMCHI, THE Ag. DVC (ADMINISTRATION) OF THE FEDERAL UNIVERSITY OF EDUCATION, OWERRI, IMO STATE
When we received the news on May 20th, 2015 that the Goodluck Jonathan administration had upgraded Alvan Ikoku Federal College of Education to a full-fledged university, we the students of the institution were overwhelmed with joy. There was loud jubilation all over the campus. Unfortunately, this joy was truncated a few months later when President Buhari’s government put our university status on “hold.”
To say that we were devastated by the development was an understatement. It was like our light had dimmed. But like a sudden rainfall amid a scorching dry season, our joy was restored in a flash with President Tinubu’s June 2023 declaration through the Federal Ministry of Education that the “hold” placed on the University status of the College had been lifted. To match words with actions, an assessment team comprising officials from the Federal Ministry of Education, National Universities Commission, National Commission for Colleges of Education and the Tertiary Education Trust Fund was sent to carry out a detailed inventory and appraisal of the existing teaching and learning facilities, students population, staff and academic structure in the institution with particular reference to their adequacy, quality and suitability for the new university status. Furthermore, on 20th October, 2023 the Federal Ministry of Education in a press release announced the official take-off of Alvan Ikoku Federal University of Education Owerri.
In furtherance of the materialization of the university status, the Federal Government appointed the Provost of the erstwhile College of Education as the Acting Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Administration) of the University while other Principal Officers of the erstwhile College were allowed to continue to discharge their duties in acting capacity until a substantive Vice-Chancellor and other Principal Officers of the University are appointed.
With these developments, we are convinced that our University has actually come to stay. We, the past and present Student Union Leaders representing hundreds of thousands of past and current students of the institution therefore seize this opportunity to thank His Excellency, President Ahmed Bola Tinubu for this single act of humanity in restoring our university status. We cannot thank you enough Your Excellency for restoring our hope, the dignity of our dear school and our truncated joy. We hence pledge our continuous gratitude to you and our unalloyed support to your administration.We also acknowledge the fatherly role played by His. Excellency Sen. Hope Uzodima, the Executive Governor of Imo State for the actualization of this feat. We are forever indebted to you, our dear governor.
We also wish to bring to the public the activities of some mischief makers and political jobbers who are scheming to reap from where they did not labour. These rascals have been using different means to distract our hard-working and dear Ag. DVC, Prof. Ngozi Stella Lemchi from the smooth administration and astute management of the institution. The wicked plotting of these enemies of progress was brought to the fore when an Owerri-based newspaper on Friday, April 12, 2024, came up with a deceitful publication with the banner headline: “Protest erupts over appointment of Alvan Ag. DVC as a Professor by IMSU.” However, the body of the newspaper failed to state how, where and when the said protest erupted neither was it stated who carried out such a protest. It became obvious that the writer and publisher of the paper were hired to paint a false picture of crisis just to put a question mark on the peaceful atmosphere championed by the Lemchi administration. But to the glory of God, they failed woefully. For whom God has blessed, no one can curse.
The leadership of the four transiting labour unions in the university namely, College of Education Academic Staff Union/Academic Staff Union of Universities (COEASU/ASUU), Senior Staff Union in Colleges of Education Nigeria/Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSUCOEN/SSANU), Non-Academic Staff Union (NASU) and National Association of Academic Technologists (NAAT) has since debunked the misleading publication in a joint publication titled “The needless distraction of Professor Stella Ngozi Lemchi, acting Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Alvan Ikoku Federal University of Education, Owerri by some over ambitious characters and enemies of progress, should stop”. This response is a clear indication that none of the University’s staff unions is in any form of conflict with the Ag. DVC and her administration, hence the workers are not protesting.
Likewise, none of the students’organizations in the university are protesting. Given the fact that neither the administrative excellence of the Ag. DVC nor the authenticity of her appointment as a Professor by the Imo State University is in contest, we therefore, plead with the authorities and general public to ignore the antics of these rascals.
We, the representatives of the student body both past and present felt it necessary to declare our stand on the ongoing. Hence, we state unequivocally that we admire the administrative style of our Ag. DVC and from the time she took over the leadership of the erstwhile college of education till now that she is serving as the Ag. DVC of our nascent university, we have no problem with her. In all these years, she has been a wonderful and caring mother to all the students. She has been very responsive to the needs and calls of the students. She has solved over 87% of the accommodation issues bothering the students especially those living on campus. She works round the clock to ensure that the student’s welfare is well taken care of. We are very happy to have her as our Ag DVC. Hence, we will be so delighted to have her as our substantive Vice-chancellor. More so, we celebrate her appointment as a Professor by the Imo State University. Let no one convince you on the contrary for such an attempt should be regarded as a deception.
We pass this vote of confidence on Prof. Ngozi Stella Lemchi for the above reasons and also based on her excellent administrative performances so far as the head of this university. The following are examples of the indelible marks she has stamped on the sand of the time which eloquently speaks to her superb administrative brilliance.
1) This is the first time in many years that the administrative head is working in unity with all the labour unions and the student union government of the institution: no strike, no threat of strike and no students’ riot. This is due to her capacity for astute management of both human and material resources of the institution.
2) Infrastructural Upgrade: Professor Stella Ngozi Lemchi prioritized the renovation of hostels, especially hostel G and D, enhancing their ambiance and functionality. In deploying the FG revitalization fund, the Lemchi administration changed over 200 doors and windows, tiled the floors of the two hostels, rebuilt the toilets completely and installed befitting and safe kitchens for the students. The work included improved water supply in the hostels, complete repainting of the edifice and installation of electrical works, wardrobes and beds. She ensures a regular supply of water and electricity in the hostels. A lot of renovation is ongoing in the educational infrastructures of the school which includes the library and Lecture halls.
3) Student Support: Prof. Stella Ngozi Lemchi established measures to combat student harassment and improved the process for NYSC mobilization and certificate issuance. Last year 3 batches of students were mobilized for service, a feat unheard of in the institution in nearly a decade. Her focus on student welfare includes streamlining clearance procedures, improving academic standards, engaging with parents and guardians and collaborating with the Student Union to speedily solve any challenges.
4) Security Enhancement: Professor Stella Ngozi Lemchi has restructured the security architecture at the University. She has promoted best practices in the recruitment of student security operatives and armed them with adequate equipment and resources for effective performance. Her efforts have significantly reduced security breaches, which was a norm before her appointment when students were being robbed and harassed regularly in their hostels and within the school premises at night and even in broad daylight.
5) Environmental sanitation: by employing environmental sanitation contractors who work in collaboration with Faculties environmental sanitation committees, hostel cleaners and others, Prof. Stella Lemchi has maintained a sparkling clean and beautiful school environment since she took up the leadership of the institution.
Her efforts to better the lots of the staff which has earned her peaceful collaboration with the staff union leaders are evident in the following achievements:
1) Staff Welfare: Prof. Lemchi cleared the backlog of staff promotions and conversions which had remained intractable for years. Hundreds of non-teaching staff were converted and properly placed. These included many who had earned higher qualifications on the job. The conversions and promotions have increased the morale and motivation of the workforce. She has been championing the welfare and proper placement of teaching staff in the transition process. She has made appeals to the regulator that lecturers be given grace periods to get the qualifications they need to maintain their positions rather than being abruptly demoted in the university to a lower rank.
2) Infrastructural developments: The Lemchi administration has initiated the construction of a Professors’ block in the Shell Camp area and increased infrastructural developments in the campus across River Nworie. By so doing, she has succeeded in stopping further encroachment on the parcel of land belonging to the university situated across the Nworie River. Currently, the Lemchi administration is working on plans to fix the ecological problems in the river bank to enable the use of the bridge constructed to aid the movement and development at the other side of the river which had hitherto restricted the infrastructural expansion of the institution.
3) Increased Internally Generated Revenue: Prof. Stella Ngozi Lemchi from the onset of her administration planned and successfully implemented policies that have boosted the internally generated revenue of the institution. One major plank of this was developing a seamless fee payment portal to close loopholes for revenue leakages. She has also revitalized the business ventures in the University like the water factory and bakery.
4) Transition Process: By her proactive, relentless and graceful engagement with the NUC and the FME. Prof. Stella Ngozi Lemchi is facilitating a smooth transition of the institution. Recently she received a 37-man team for resource verification of the University programmes from the NUC. Furthermore, in collaboration with the staff unions of the University, Lemchi has sent a bill to the National Assembly for the codification of the law that established the University to give permanency to the University status.
The numerous achievements of Prof. Mrs Stella Ngozi Lemchi, cannot be fully listed in a single publication like this, to state the obvious. Thus, those who are scheming to take over her position are so intimidated by the achievements she has made in such a short while hence, they are resorting to cheap blackmail via their publication of calumny.
It is on the above premises that we, the students of Alvan Ikoku University of Education, Owerri consider our Ag. DVC (Administration), Prof. Stella Ngozi Lemchi, suitable to continue to head the administration of this new University. We are therefore calling on the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, to appoint Prof. Stella Ngozi Lemchi as the substantive Vice-Chancellor of Alvan lkoku Federal University of Education, Owerri, to enable her to continue the good work. We pledge our continuous cooperation with her for greater success.
Gracias!
Signed
