How Prof Auwal Uba Is Transforming Bauchi State University Into A World-class Institution

For a final year student of Bauchi State University Gadau (BASUG), Fatima Abdullahi, the best that happened in her four years as a student, was gaining access to Internet facility, the Moot Courts at Faculty of Law Misau and the fact that she has a good hostel accommodation to lay her head after a hard day’s study.

In 2017 when she got admission to study in the Faculty of Law, Miss Fatima Abdullahi said studying was difficult in the sense that there was no internet facilities nor journals to do in-depth research.

“The students had to use their phones for assignment, researches and study using lamps or rechargeables.

“For us as students using your personal money to buy recharge cards and moving around to recharge your lamps are tasking activities.

“However, all that changed when Prof.Auwal Uba assumed duty as Vice Chancellor,” she said.

She is not the only student that is deeply appreciative of the new pace of development at Bauchi State University Gadau. Jibrin Labbo, a law student said he would be eternally grateful for the provision of state-of-the-art library for the Faculty of Law which has enabled him to widely and smartly meet up with international best practices that are required of students.

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Labbo explained that since the institution started receiving journals from some American universities, he and other students from the Faculty of Law have benefited immensely in terms of improved academic performance.

Dean Faculty of Law, Dr. Shamsudeen Magaji lends credence to the assertions of Fatima and Labbo.

He further explained how the current Vice Chancellor of Bauchi State University, Prof Auwal Uba reinvigorated and rejuvenated the Faculty of Law.

“In recent times, the Faculty of Law has been collaborating with the Brigham University and the University of Iowa in the United States of America.

“This collaboration centres on capacity building and improving the intellectual prowess of the students in the department.

“The collaboration also centres on students and staff exchange programmes. Soon our students and staff would be going to the US while students from their varsities would be visiting our institution due to the exchange programmes.

“Furthermore, our staff and some of our students are collaborating with their counterparts in doing researches. As a result of these programmes, students performances have improved drastically. In fact, the Faculty has received consignment of 100 volumes of books courtesy of this collaboration.

“Our Faculty and its students can compete favourably with any Institution or students in any part of the world,” Magaji added.

HOW PROF UBA RE-ENGINEERED FACULTY OF LAW INTO A WORLD CLASS DEPARTMENT

One of the first Prof Auwal Uba did on assumption of office, was upgrading the Faculty of Law library and provision of modern computers sets solely for the students.

He took a step further by building an ICT centre with internet access so that the students can access any journal from any part of the world.

In his bid to ensure that students study in comfort, Prof Auwal ensued that solar powered street lights were provided all over the campus and he also commissioned blocks of hostels meant for female students.

Again, he made sure that Faculty of Law was accredited by the Council of Legal Education in 2019. This was followed by the enrolment of batch 1 and batch 2 students of BASUG into Nigerian Law School

The Dean of Law Faculty went on to add that the staff in his Faculty were also not ignored by Prof.Uba as he facilitated the sponsorship of lecturers to undertake their Masters and PhDs at various universities.

He further added that staff were sent on regular basis to attend international conferences.

Speaking further, the Deputy Vice Chancellor Academics, Dr Ahmed Salisu Garba listed the achievements of Prof. Uba.

“As regards development at the Faculty of Law of Bauchi State University, I would like to state that a lot has been done particularly early 2018; almost a month after the current Vice Chancellor assumed office.

“He was able to ensure

1. Provision of constant electricity on the campus located at Misau LGA.

2. Provision of funtional Internet connectivity accessible even at the hostels.

3. Problem of water scarcity that had been a major problem for students was addressed through the provision of a big water reservoir . This provides water to all offices and the hostels.

In addition to a big generator that provides electricity, there are solar panels to ensure that power is made available to pump water at all times.

4. A functional standby generator to complement the provision of electricity on the campus.

“Through the VC’s efforts, the faculty benefited from NNPC projects in the form of hostels which are more than enough to
accommodate the students of the Faculty.

“In ensuring accreditation of the Law programme, firstly, the VC equipped staff offices with furniture, air conditioners, refrigerators and book shelves.

“Secondly, equipping both the faculty’s e-library and the conventional library of the Faculty through the provision of legal e-learning software, e-learning resources such as Heinonline which has more than 10,000 legal journals etc.

“Provision of resources needed for the accreditation of the Law programme both by Nigerian University Commission (NUC) and Council for Legal Education.

“Before these investments by Prof Auwal Uba, the Faculty never passed its accreditation with good results.

However, with the provision of all these and more, our students have experienced no delay in securing admission for its students into the Nigerian Law School.

“The faculty has now graduated its third set of lawyers, most of whom passed and are now practising law.

Academic collaboration:

The Vice Chancellor also made efforts in establishing international academic collaborations with some Universities in the United States of America.

The universities are the College of Law, University of Iowa, USA and also the College of Law, Brigham young University, USA. The collaboration includes exchange of academic staff and students for a semester of session.

Through the collaboration, Bauchi State University benefited from large volume of legal books and document.For example, Universityof Iowa, donated 150 volumes of legal books to Bauchi State University. Also Brigham young University donated books worth 1000 volumes who h are on the way now.

In addition, provision of official vehicles for the Faculty has been ensured. Dean’s official car and a utility vehicle for the Faculty. In fact the Vice Chancellor used lots of resources to provide for the Faculty such that at the moment, we have no problem as far as accreditation of the law program is concerned .

“Furthermore, it is the Vice Chancellor that made it possible for the Faculty to have a befitting moot court building; one of the best in the country with state of the art facilities and also a well equipped clinic on the campus

As our correspondent moved to the Faculty of Management Sciences at Gadau, Fatima Mohammed, a 300 Level Student of Business Administration, said she and her fellow students were most impressed with the construction and furnishing of Department of Business Administration by the VC.

“The Building and campuses are equipped with internet facilities , clinics and portable water for the students and staff convenience

“There are two buses that help students to shuttle from the campuses to the town,” she added

Nonetheless, Dr. Ahmed Salisu Garba further enunciated the achievements of the Prof Auwal Uba administration as follows:

1.Provision of internet services for both staff and students

2. Establishment of clinic in Bauchi Campus’

3. Establishment of an academic Journal (International Journal of Intellectual Discourse)

4. Academic staff training for both local and international

5. Overhaul of Accounting complex roofing

6. Introduction of committee system in managing the affairs of the University

7. Provision of furnitures and office facilities to all academic staff

8. Repairing of lecture theatres and halls

9. Instilling academic culture in the University

10. Provision of potable water supply

11. Connecting the campus to national grid

12. Construction of football pitch and provision sporting facilities in Bauchi campus

13. Beautification of the campus vicinity through provision of landscaping and flowers

14. Staff capacity development through conferences and colloquiua.

15. Attainment of full accreditation status for all courses of the Faculty

16. Reorganising part- time degree programme

17. Establishment of postgraduate school

18. Construction of clinic in Bauchi campus

19. Provision of two new brand buses

20. Reorganizing the security architecture of the campus

21. Spliting of Faculty of social and management science into FMS and FSS

According to the majority of students and staff of BASUG spoken to and the level of development witnessed by our correspondent, Bauchi State University has been indeed transformed into a world class varsity.