The National Association of Polytechnic Students on Saturday decried the poor state of infrastructure in the Federal Polytechnic, Kaduna, calling for an urgent intervention in the school.
reports that NAPS is the umbrella body for all Polytechnics, Monotechnics, Colleges of Education Technical, Colleges of Health Sciences, Cooperative Colleges, Colleges of Statistics and other allied institutions awarding National Diploma and Higher National Diploma cut across the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria.
While addressing journalists in Abuja, the Vice President, external affairs of NAPS, Lawal Muhammed said, “It is often said that the best weapon we can use in shaping the future of any generation is education. As such, when negativity thrives where progress is evitable, the best option is to extinguish it immediately before it consume the entire space.
“Therefore, the leadership of NAPS feels it’s very important to set the records straight for the public and the concerned authorities, both the ICRC and the Federal Ministry of Education, to know that it is no longer news how students are being neglected without the basic amenities that warrant a conducive atmosphere for learning.
“This press conference has become urgent as it connects to accommodation problem and hardship being faced by a large number of Nigerian students especially in Kaduna Polytechnic as a resultant effect of those who are opposing the right decision to be implemented.
“Despite allocating just a fraction of the little percentage of the budget to education, the lean resources and underfunding of the educational sector, the present Executive Secretary of the NBTE, Prof. Idris Bugaje, who was the then Rector had initiated the idea of Public Private Partnership with the aim of raising the quality of the hostels to more befitting standard and habitable ones.
“It is on record that, a construction company “Markpoint,” was awarded the contract but couldn’t meet up with the expectations, then came KYC Interproject, a reputable company with professional record in the construction sector, who acquired Markpoint.
“At this juncture, KYC Interproject advised that based on the initial agreement with Markpoint, the earlier presented bill was to produce a low quality job. It therefore advised that the entire process be revisited with the aim of raising the bar and changing the face of the hostels to an international standard. We want the government of Nigeria to know this, having presented the required BOQ to the present management of Kaduna Polytechnic under the leadership of Dr. Suleman Umar, it has suffered a serious setback.
“NAPS is calling and appealing in strong terms to the NBTE, the Federal Government and Federal Ministry of Education, on the urgent need to call to a roundtable the contractor KYC interproject, to revisit and focus its lens on the plan submitted and, allow the company to move to site, since it has been sinking its personal funds based on the PPP concession. Personal interest by the leadership of Kaduna Polytechnic management should not stall the standard raised by KYC Interproject, else any plan to compromise the already signed agreement, will be left with no option than to mobilise the entire students for a total and indefinite shutdown of Kaduna Polytechnic.”
