Reps to summon Okonjo-Iweala over varsity capital funds

[Mirror]

The House of Representatives Committee on Education has threatened to summon the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala. The threat is for her to explain the non-release of capital funds for the execution of projects in the federal universities across the country.

Speaking yesterday in Katsina State, Chairman of the committee, Hon Aminu Fagge, said the House had visited the federal universities and was confronted with major complaint of nonrelease of funds for projects' execution.

Fagge said as a result of the development, it became necessary for the committee to look into such complaint and take necessary steps to address it.

He said the committee would, therefore, summon the finance minister to explain why the funds had not been released when such funds were supposed to have released earlier than now.

According to him, the committee would monitor the release of the funds since it was part of its oversight function.

He also added that the committee would ensure judicious utilization of the funds whenever they are released to the universities.

The committee has queried irregularities in the recruitment of staff and appointment of officials at the Federal University of Agriculture in Dutsin-Ma, Katsina State.

The committee, during a visit to the institution, chided the Vice-Chancellor, Prof James Ayatse, for failure to adhere to the federal character in recruitment of officials.

It said those recruited to head various departments in the institution were not supposed to have been there in the first place.

It alleged that the vicechancellor was frustrating indigenes of Katsina and other states in the North- West to secure employment into the institution.

The committee said there was the need for adjustment in the recruitment process to reflect the federal character.

But the vice-chancellor said it was not his intention to create an imbalance in the recruitment of staff into the university.

He said the institution's management placed advertisement for PhD holders to head departments, but qualified candidates from Katsina and other neighboring states did not show interest.

However, Ekiti Deputy Governor, Prof Modupe Adelabu, has called on the Federal Government to adequately fund university education.

She described as unacceptable that products of the Nigerian university have become unemployable in both local and international market.

Adelabu, who appraised the face-off between the Federal Government and members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) in a chat with journalists in Ado- Ekiti, noted that the nation's universities have become shadows of their glorious past.

National Mirror