House Committee Chairman on Colleges of Agriculture, Hon. Linus Okorie |
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FCA
Alumni calls for peace
The House
Committee on Colleges of Agriculture, National Assembly has invited all the
parties involved in the crisis rocking the Federal College of Agriculture (FCA),
Moorplantation, Ibadan and Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria (ARCN) to a
hearing schedule for today Monday 20th November, 2017.
Meanwhile,
the old students Association of the college has called on Federal Government to
do the needful that would ensure peace back to college.
This Monday meeting
according to the House Committee Chairman on Colleges of Agriculture, Hon.
Linus Okorie was in response to the directive by the National Assembly leadership
that a hearing for all the parties in the crisis of the two organizations be
called and finding be immediately reported back to the house.
Hon. Linus
Okorie told us when asked the way forwards that all parties in FCA have been
invited to a hearing with his committee at Abuja on Monday today with ARCN
management and staff adding this was in
pursuant to a resolution taken early this month by the leadership of the house
of representative of the National Assembly.
The crisis
that started about six weeks ago at the FCA reached its climax last Monday as
many people who were wounded are still in the hospital receiving treatment with
properties worth million of naira lost to the fracas between the policemen and
students of the college.
Also at
ARCN, a long time disagreement between the management and the staff of the
council over retirement issues on age sixty (60) and thirty five (35) years of
service had degenerated to total disruption of activities and down of tools in
the council sometimes last month at Abuja.
Already, the
House Committee on Colleges of Agriculture has sent out letter of invitations
to all the parties involved in the crisis and it is expected that fare hearing
would be given to all parties in order to get a comprehensive report for the
entire house in the National Assembly.
In the same
vein, the Alumni Association of the FCA after its emergency meeting held on the
16th of November, 2017 has called on the Federal Government to
ensure restoration of peace to the college thereby condemning the breakdown of
law and orders occasioned by the policemen disruption of students’ peaceful
demonstration against lingering non classes activities in the Institute last
week Monday.
In a press
release made available to us, the National Executive of the Association
condemned the lawlessness that recently occurred in the college leading to the
destruction of properties and halting of human beings saying the Minister of
Agriculture and Rural development, Chief Audu Ogbeh must immediately respond to
restoring peace back to the Institute being the oldest with establishment
record of 1921.
The
statement which was signed by Comrade Emmanuel Bankole and Mr. Taiwo Oduola,
the National President and Secretary respectively stated that “ the alumni has
been observing with keen interest the imbroglio between the management of the
college , the staff union and students which has been lingering for the past
few months. On Monday 12th November, 2017, the crisis erupted which
led to a clash between Federal College of Agriculture students and the police
during a protest against the students inability to receive lectures for the
past few months. It resulted into casualties among Research staff and students
on the campus”
“The alumni
therefore wishes to state unequivocally that the situation in the moor
plantation campus is becoming unbearable and hereby call on all stakeholders
especially the Honorable Minister of Agriculture, Chief Audu Ogbeh to step in
and take urgent actions. The college is a trail blazer in training of
agricultural students in Nigeria and had been a peaceful institution right from
its inception until recent times” stated the press release.
Provost Adelekan has destroyed the system. The only thing that can bring peace and progress is for the powers that be to remove him. In three years, he has run the place aground
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