The Governing Council (GC) of the Abia State Government-owned Abia State University Uturu (ABSU) has instituted what it tagged a Town Hall meeting with the university community, comprising the management, senate, staff unions, and student leaders, among other stakeholders.
The Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council (PC), Rt Hon. Agwu U. Agwu, a former Speaker of the Abia State House Assembly, said that the Council is student-centric and “has the vision to oversee ABSU as where knowledge of science, information, communication and technology, social and management sciences, humanities and arts, as well as entrepreneurial and vocational skills are harnessed to help solve the problems of the nation”.
The town hall meeting/forum was aimed at discussing and addressing arising and outstanding matters of common interest that would impact industrial peace and advance the university.
The forum also affords the participants the opportunity to assess what has been done or not done and needs to be done, and how to do the needful towards addressing them.
Addressing this maiden town hall meeting, held on Wednesday in the university Senate chamber, the PC reiterated his Council’s policy to carry all along, expressing optimism that the town hall meetings would expectedly be analysing issues, challenges/problems and proffering the solutions.
The staff unions were represented by Comrades Chidi Mba of ASUU, Chika Onuoha of NASU, Chudi Madukairo of the Senior Staff Association (SSANU), Ugonna Emma Ugoani of the Students Union, including Dr Mrs Christiana Eze, Principal of the Staff School.
They (staff unions) raised matters relating to some salary claims, earned academic allowance, check-off dues, 2023 disengaged staff that seek re-engagement, while appealing to the council to address them.
The principal of the Staff School (Dr Eze), elatedly, on behalf of the Staff of the ABSU Demonstration and International Schools, announced that the eleven years’ complex problem of the schools has been addressed, with the staff put in their right salary grades.
The Student Union leader, Comrade Ugoani, commended the GC for instituting the open town hall meeting that included students’ representatives, describing it as a hitherto missing but worthy slot for stakeholders to interact freely.
PC Agwu listed the myriads of academic and administrative problems that he said his led council, which came into being in November 2024, met, reporting that some of these problems have been addressed, but that all could not be attended to at the same time within the council’s eleven months in office.
These challenges/problems, he stated, range from uninspired students and poorly motivated workforce, decay in infrastructure and unhealthy learning environment, high level of insecurity that led to staff low productivity, mounting salary arrears and debts, including indiscipline, high level of gross misconduct among staff, plus declining academic standards and low student enrolment.
He said that the GC, after reviewing these challenges, has been able to steer the ship back through mobilisation of massive support from the state government, cooperation of the management and other stakeholders within the university.
He reported, “Council set up various Council Committees to attend to staff welfare, discipline and other matters affecting the university, interfaced with various Staff Unions on their demands in order to sustain existing industrial harmony, sought and obtained approval from the state Governor and Visitor to the university, Dr Alex Otti, for the recruitment of another set of non-teaching staff to fill the vacant positions.”
He, however, remarked that these various problems/challenges cannot be addressed at the same time, but as funds become available.
The Vice Chancellor, Professor Ndukwe Okeudo, said that the university is happy to have a GC led by Hon. Agwu and Dr Alex Otti as Abia State Governor and their Visitor.
The university, during the meeting, honoured the 66 students who won 42 medals, comprising 20 gold, 13 silver and nine bronze, in the state maiden Tertiary Education Games held in November in Umuahia, the state capital, and rewarded them with the sum of one million naira (N1m).
The Council undertook inspection of some ongoing giant projects on the campus, namely the students’ hostel and the Faculty of Law building.
The following day, Thursday, the Council held its 159th regular meeting, after which the PC told journalists that the approval given by the Visitor to recruit not less than 200 academic staff has been implemented.
