Student Of Ignatius Ajuru University Of Education Threatens Court Action Over Alleged Seizure Of Result After Postdoctorate Programme

By Daniel Dafe

A postdoctorate student of the Department of Management, Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, Rumoulumeni, Rivers State, Dr OLOKO Oladele, has again written to the Acting Vice Chancellor of the institution, Prof Okechukwu Onochukwu, over his sad experience of trying to get his supervisors to do the needful in order to be done with the programme, saying that his result was seized over issues strange to him.

Oladele had written his first letter to the VC dated 7th December,2021, where he alleged ill-treatment from his project supervisors, adding that the said lecturers abused their office, involved in mal-administration and that his fundamental rights were also abused.

In the second letter dated 15th February, 2022, the student wondered why he was been treated this way and the management yet to do anything about his predicament even after writing to the VC.

He said he was admitted into the Department of Management, Faculty of Business Studies as a doctorate degree student in 2017/2018 academic session for a two-year full time programme, but said that after he finished his course work, the then post graduate coordinator, Dr N. Chukugwe allocated him to the former Head of Department, Dr N Jude and Dr E. Amah as his supervisors.

Oladele said that while Dr N Jude is from the university, Dr E Amah is from the Department of Management, Faculty of Management Studies, University of Port-Harcourt, Choba, Rivers State.

Continuing, he said he did his departmental defense November 2019 with the help of his first supervisor, but immediately he finished his defense, the then P.G coordinator, Dr N Chukugwe frowned at him not consulting Dr E Amah in UNIPORT.

He however gave reasons for avoiding her, saying that Dr Amah demanded the sum of Five Hundred Thousand naira (#500k) from him before she supervises his thesis and twenty thousand naira (#20k) to fuel her car whenever he is having defense at the University.

According to him, he reported the matter to the former Vice Chancellor, Prof Ndimele on the bribe and other alleged immoral acts characterized with her poor interpersonal relationship.

He said that based, on the professional and fatherly advice given by Ndimele, he decided to change her as his second supervisor by writing two separate letters to the former P.G coordinator, Dr N Chukugwu for change of supervisor, but that she refused to grant his request and no official reason was given for turning down his request.

Narrating his ordeal, he added: “I did my final defence in July 2021, and all the few corrections made were effected with my supervisor, Dr N Jude and a God-fearing Professor of Management, L. Okere. After the final defence, I came down to the university to effect necessary few corrections as pointed out by the external examiner, Prof D.I Hamilton. But, the former P.G coordinator, Dr N Chukugwu, told me categorically that she will not release my results for compilation because I refused to work with her bosom friend, Dr E Amah now promoted to Prof E.Amah.

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“Dr E Amah also said that she has received valid reports about me on how I constantly wrote series of petitions against the Rector of the federal Polytechnic, Ile- Oluji- in Ondo State where I lectured as a Chief Lecturer in the Department of Business Administration and Management, simply because I was not made the acting rector of the Polytechnic when the position was vacant.”

According to him, he has used all the internal mechanism available to resolve the issue by approaching the new Head of Department, Dr (Mrs) S. Lawson, both the old dean of post graduate school, Prof G Irikana and the new Dean, Prof G Wilson, adding that there is no positive response from them.

“Both the External Examiner, Prof D.I Hamilton and my supervisor, Dr N. Jude both told the Head of Department that all the necessary corrections have being effected by the student to the best of her knowledge. DR. Victor, the new post graduate coordinator also backed the fact that all the necessary corrections have been effected. After consulting both the external examiner, Prof D. I Hamiton and supervisor Dr N. Jude, Dr Victor concluded that it seems that Dr E Amah have other reasons best known to her why she has refused to sign the doctorate degree valid student work after the Head of Department has told her to,“ he said.

He said that the situation has denied him the opportunity of been appointed as a rector of two different federal polytechnics that were recently advertised based on existing vacancies.

“It has also denied me the opportunity of been employed as a professor to fill in some existing vacancies in some recent universities advertisement,” he stated.

Adding: “Another area where the subject matter have affected my academic attainment is not allowing me to participate in the senior executive course 44th programme at the prestigious National Institute of Policies and Strategic Studies, Kuru in Pleatue State (NIPSS), due to my contribution to the federal polytechnic act as amended in 2019, the federal government through the federal Ministry of Education, Abuja decided to nominate me for the senior executive programme. BUT because of the fraudulent attitude of few lecturers, the department refused to send my Ph.D result

“Thirdly, the failure of the department to process my Ph.D management result as also had some health implication on me because it has resulted in my poor state of health which makes me to be a hypertensive patient now.”

Continuing, he said that students have both moral and legal rights to accept or reject any lecturer(s) given to me to supervise at any level of the degree certification (B.Sc, M.Sc & Ph.D), most especially based on corrupt practices and other unethical behaviour by his supervisor(s).

He recalled that a Supreme Court Judgement between BOLATITO V University of Ibadan, Ibadan Oyo State reveals that the student (BOLATITO) has both moral and legal rights to change her supervisor at any time of the defence proceeding because it is a fundamental right of the student to accept or reject any supervisor assigned to him/her as long as he/she informed the Head of Department with reason for accepting or rejecting such lecturer(s)/supervisor(s), stressing that the cost of Fifty Million Naira (N50,000,000.00) only was awarded in favour of the claimant.

He warned that if the university management failed to address the subject, and the subject is been challenged in a court of competent jurisdiction, the university management should be ready to pay the sum of Fifty Million Naira above as damage penalty because the subject will be part of the prayers he will be asking for.

He hinted that he is ready to challenge this in a court of competent jurisdiction if the chief security officer continue to work with the bad eggs within the law enforcement agencies to continue to embarass him on the campus.

Oladele said that he has also decided to review the compensation upwardly to One Billion Naira only instead of the initial damage of Five Hundred Million Naira that was initially demanded in his earlier petition and asked that his doctorate degree should be backdated by the university management to 2018/2019 academic session as Ph.D result in Management (Entrepreneurship Option).

He vowed to head tp the court if after 14 working days of delivery of this petition no response is heard from the management, while he urged the new VC not to allow himself to be corrupted by the system in the university.