Abu Micheal
The newly appointed vice chancellor of Federal University Lokoja, kogi state Professor Olayemi Akinwumi has pledged his determination to making the university the first of its kind among the Universities in the Country.
Just as he reiterated his commitment to run an all inclusive administration that will ensure its rapid growth and development that will upstage other universities that was ahead of her in the present ranking .
Professor Akinwumi gave the Assurance Monday during the handing over ceremony in Lokoja, the state capital.
The new vice chancellor who is the third vice chancellor of ten year old university gave kudos to the first vice chancellor professor Rafindadi and the successor professor Angela Freeman Miri for the their outstanding contributions to the footing and rapid growth of the university .
According to the professor of History who described the ivory tower as a child of destiny that has been managed by two erudite professors before him as the best to have happened to any University of her generation.
“The university in 10 years has attracted a solid academic, administrative and technical staff. It has also attracted students from all over the country.
“My primary goal is to add value to the university stated mission which is to be the best among the nine newly-established Federal universities and one of the 10-top ranking universities in Africa.
” I just know what I need to do if Federal University, Lokoja is to move to the top-10. The first part of the vision is relatively more straight-forward. I have personally been to this universities 11 federal universities established in 2011
“”He said that the university currently ranked seventh among the 11 Federal Universities established in 2012, 78th in Nigeria, 255th in Africa and 10,600th in the world and in this category, the top three universities are Dutse, Oye-Ekiti and Tashere. We are number 78 in Nigeria, 255 in Africa and 10,600 in the world.
He assured that the efforts to improve on the ranking commences now and coupled with his local and global experience, the journey to the top would be achieved by all hands on deck.
He called on the students and staff of this university whom he said are so passionate about raising the bar of the fortune of the university.
” The university has a unique mission to train employable graduates through competency-based teaching, applied research and practical community service to the catchment area, Africa and the world.
“At the interview that gave me this job, I submitted a vision plan that outlined what I will do if I got the job. Now that I have the job, I have reviewed the plan alongside the university’s strategic plan.
“I will share the plan which is built on ten focal areas will be shared with an expanded management committee and subsequently with the Senate so that it will be adopted and truly owned by the university.
The erudite professor promise to hit the ground running by growing bottom line and seriously washable expenditure by monitoring evaluation and benchmarking, which will be taken seriously and driven by internal mechanism and external watch agents.
He said the pandemic has come with challenges which has altered the way they teach, learn, conduct research, attend meetings, seminars and conferences have changed very rapidly in the last year , assuring of maximising old and new opportunities derivable from the pandemic
“We will transfer our campus to a beautiful green one. All new undergraduate and postgraduate students must plant and nurture and economic tree from entry to graduation and the time I complete my term in 1825 days we should have a minimum of 10,000 economic trees on our campus.
“We will map and capture all essential data for education, social and economic services and a repository of information and knowledge. As digital natives, our students will be equipped with skills that will help them understand the science of numbers and how to use numbers to make decisions.
” Sports and entertainment will also be promoted vigorously under my watch. We will identify a few essential sports and grow their participation so that a national champion in one of them will emerge in three years” He asserted.
In a remark , the kogi state Governor,Alhaji Yahaya Bello represented by Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology Mr Wemi Jones , said the Government and people of the state have no cause for alarm as his antecedent speaks volumes that will catapult the school to the top.
The Commissioner assured him that God has prepared him specifically to take over the mantle of leadership at this point in time because institution need somebody like him and with his kind of profile in Lokoja at this time.
According to Wemi Jones the Ministry of Education under his leadership has had a wonderful working relationship with FUL adding that he looked forward to more synergy with Education on prime position in the New Direction Agenda of the state government.
“I am not convinced that with what you have accomplished, I am just optimist that the Federal University, Lokoja is in the best of hands and shall see glorious development going forward.
Before his new assignment, professor Akinwumi was at the Nasarawa State University, Keffi, where he served as Head of Department of History, Dean of the Faculty of Arts; Director, Institute of Governance and Security Studies; Dean, Postgraduate School and Deputy Vice-chancelor Academic.