By joshua 
Stakeholders Urge New Kogi Poly Rector to Tackle Resurgent Textbook Sales, Other Malpractice Allegations
Books currently on sale
Few months after assuming office, the new Rector of Kogi State Polytechnic, Lokoja, Prof. Salihu Sanusi Avidime, is under pressure from stakeholders to urgently address complaints of a return to banned practices that previously undermined the institution’s reputation.
Reports from The Nigerian Post Newspaper and students who spoke on condition of anonymity allege that the sale of textbooks and workbooks—abolished six years ago has resurfaced on campus.
Students claim the materials are sold at exorbitant rates, with a example of a textbooks going for ₦3,500 and workbooks for ₦800.
The complaints go beyond textbook sales. Some students allege a resurgence of “sorting” for marks through cash or sexual favors, along with cases of sexual harassment. The practices mirror those that plagued the polytechnic before the immediate past administration, when examination malpractice, cultism, and other vices earned the institution a reputation as a “glorified secondary school where anything goes.”
Stakeholders say the development threatens to reverse the gains made in restoring academic integrity at the polytechnic, which has recently become a preferred choice for admission seekers in the state and beyond.
“It is a stitch in time that saves nine,” one stakeholder said. “If these issues are not addressed quickly, the institution risks sliding back to its days of lost glory.”
Since taking office, Prof. Avidemi has introduced institutional and academic reforms aimed at repositioning the polytechnic for greater excellence. However, concerned stakeholders argue that tackling student complaints and safeguarding academic standards should be treated as the top priority alongside broader reforms.
“The earlier the Rector sits up to these primary issues, the better,” they added. “When the former Rector was here, he banned the sale of books. Since he left, everything changed.”
Kogi State Polytechnic is one of the state’s flagship tertiary institutions, and its handling of these allegations is expected to set the tone for discipline and academic credibility in the coming months.
Efforts to reach the Rector’s office for an official response were unsuccessful at press time.
Prof. Avidime assumed office on 11th February 2026 as the 8th substantive Rector of the institution.
He took over from Prof. Salisu Ogbo Usman, who served as Rector from April 4, 2020 to February 11, 2026. Prof. Ogbo was reappointed for a second term in 2024 but was later appointed Vice-Chancellor of Prince Abubakar Audu University, Anyigba.
Prof. Avidime is a scholar in Political Science with degrees from Usmanu Dan Fodio University, Bayero University Kano, University of Calabar, and a Ph.D. from Prince Abubakar Audu University.