By; Mohammed Kawu, Bauchi
The Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU) has said that its believes in financial prudence and academic justice, as the myriad of challenges facing the institution cannot be handled lightly, but it’s however poised to vigorously tackle them until they were successfully surmounted.
The Vice Chancellor of the University, Professor Ibrahim Hassan Garba gave this assurance, recalling that, “When I assumed office sometimes last year, I met a very huge amount of debt on the University. I have been able to settle nearly one-third of that loan in the last few months I am here, without incurring any fresh loan at all”.
Receiving the University’s unions of SSANU and NASU during a solidarity visit to his office, the Vice Chancellor noted with delight how the University staff and students proudly show to see ATBU progressing in its mandate as a revered citadel of learning
Professor Ibrahim Hassan Garba told the leadership of the two unions that he was overwhelmed by their solidarity and thanked them for their patriotism and foresight, while urging the SSANU and NASU members on the same spirit
The Vice Chancellor enumerated some of the achievements recorded during his one year in office to include refurbishing of five luxirious buses that are now on the road to ease students’ shuttle between Gubi and Yelwa campuses in Bauchi metropolis
He explained that the 32-seater bus, is also nearly ready to be added to the existing staff bus fleet to ease transportation to work, revealing further, “You may be aware that we have started refurbishing the eleven grounded tractors owned by the University”.
According to him, six of them were made ready and are currently involved in this year’s farming season, while two more are almost ready, and the rest will have their refurbishing completed immediately after the next two are delivered.
Vice Chancellor also told the unions leadership that, “Our major aim is to support staff and members of the Bauchi community who are farming on our campuses with a subsidized rate charged at less than 30% of commercial rate in town”.
Garba similarly disclosed that the varsity’s management has proposed a seamless process of promotion exercise that will in the future eliminate or reduce to the barest minimum the issue of long period for implementing of staff promotions.
Professor Ibrahim Hassan Garba then commended the University community for the solid support and co-operation being rendered to his administration since its assumption to office sometimes last year.
Speaking earlier, the leadership of the two unions, assured of their continued support and cooperation to the administration of the Vice Chancellor, Professor Ibrahim Hassan Garba,
saying his leadership efforts in students welfare, staff welfare are highly commendable.
They made the commendations in a separate solidarity visit to the Office of the Vice Chancellor, Professor Ibrahim Hassan Garba where the unions noted with dissatisfaction the recent media campaign of calumny against the Vice-Chancellor, describing it as very unfortunate.
The NASU Chairman, Comrade Yusuf D. Yusuf who also paid a visit along with his EXCO, told the Vice-Chancellor that union was puzzled by the recent escalation of negative media publicity that trailed the University over a Federal Government policy decision recently announced by the University’s Pro-Chancellor, wrongly attributed to the VC’s initiative.
Comrade Yusuf D. Yusuf explained that the Vice-Chancellor and, indeed, the University as an institution, did not deserve such an unnecessary negative media publicity, a situation he described as highly regrettable to the image and integrity of the institution
The leadership of SSANU on its turn assured the Vice–Chancellor that its members will always support him in any genuine effort at advancing the academic excellence of the University Union Chairman, Comrade Sulisma Dauda Jatau therefore assured the Vice Chancellor that they will always rally round behind the Vice Chancellor in his genuine efforts to address the challenges of the University.
Comrade Sulisma Jatau said that the Union has noted with pride the examplary leadership style of the administration of Professor Ibrahim Hassan Garba, especially in terms of financial prudence and the rule of law.
ATBU Director of Information, Zailani Bappa said in a statement Wednesday that the Vice-Chancellor was wrongly accused in the media by a certain Bauchi-based group of unilateral captains to misguide the Governing Council of the University over the closure of the Faculty of Management Sciences.
Malam Zailani Bappa explained that certain courses in the Faculty of Technology Education were similarly closed down following the Federal Government’s policy decision which the public were later made to understand, and had nothing to do with the Vice-Chancellor.
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