Factionalising Auchi Poly

Idogho, Rector, Auchi Poly

Crisis rocks Auchi Polytechnic over alleged illegal appointment of Dr. (Mrs.) Idogho as Rector of the institution
By Walid Ogunseri, Benin City
Right from the beginning, the appointment of the first female Rector of Auchi Polytechnic, Auchi in Edo State, Dr. (Mrs.) Idogho by the federal government, despite the cancellation of the appointment interview report on the basis of alleged irregularities and illegalities by the former Minister of Education, Dr. Sayyidi Abba Ruma, was trailed by controversy and this seems not to be over.
Since the controversy surrounding the appointment of Dr. (Mrs.) Idogho as the new Rector of the Polytechnic by the federal government started, the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP), the Auchi Polytechnic chapter become the first causality. Upon her assumption of office as the new Rector, Idogho was said to have taken steps to ensure that ASUP, the Auchi Polytechnic chapter, was split into factions and rendered impotent.
Idogho, until her appointment was the Dean of the School of Business Studies. Her name was shortlisted into the first position for the job of the Polytechnic’s Rector on the eve of the departure of the former civilian administration to take over from the former Rector, Sir. (Dr.) O. F. Eboreime whose tenure had expired.  Notedly, this has raised concerns within the Polytechnic community in Auchi. The Source, for instance, gathered that upon the expiration of the tenure of the former Rector Eboreime, the former Governing Council had put up an advert for the position of a Rector for Auchi Polytechnic. That advert provided in very clear terms the general and specific qualifications for the post. Idogho inspite of her not meeting the requirements for the post was, however, shortlisted.
According to Abayomi Thomas, counsel to Auchi Polytechnic chapter of ASUP, “during the interview for appointment and contrary to the Polytechnic Act of 1999, amended as 1993 Act, Dr. Eboreime was made a member of the interview panel. He was not only present but also participated in the conduct of the interview and deliberately influenced the scoring of the candidates in contravention of the law.”
According to him, “because of the undue influence exerted by the former Rector, Dr. Eboreime and the representative of the Minister for Education, Otunba O. Olapeju, Dr. (Mrs.) Idogho who ought not to have been shortlisted in the first instance was manipulated into the first position”.
Top academic and other management staffers of the Polytechnic were said to have been taken unawares by the development.
Abayomi Thomas, one of them, told The Source that the strange appointment was not only illegal, but also against the Polytechnic Act of 1990 and amended in 1993, which states that only a person who posses a Masters Degree in a technology-based subject should be appointed as Rector of Polytechnics. Idogho does not possess a Masters Degree in any technology-based subject, which informed a suit substituted by Ibrahim Momoh and two others against Auchi Polytechnic and five others, asking the court to determine whether a person who does not have a Masters degree in a technology based subject can be a Rector of Auchi Polytechnic, and if not, whether Idogho’s appointment is not illegal.  
Abayomi further explained that “when the result of the interview was made public by Idogho herself, the three unions on campus protested to the President and Commander in Chief of the Federal Republic of Nigeria through the Honourable Minister for Education. In that protest letter, the Unions not only questioned the rationale for recommending a candidate who was not prima facie qualified for the position but pointed out that the former Rector deliberately exerted undue influence in the selection process in order to foist a stooge on the Polytechnic community so as to cover up his tracks.
He pointed out that Dr. (Mrs.) Idogho has adopted a divide and rule tactics and use of hirelings of the former Rector, which has put the Polytechnic in a state of academic stagnation and perpetual strife.
Abayomi noted that, on the basis of these objections by the three unions, the then Minister for Education, Dr. Ruma called a meeting at which the Chairman of the Governing Council, the executives of the three unions, Dr. Idogho herself and some officials of the Higher Education Division of the Federal Ministry of Education were in attendance, adding that after exhaustive discussions at that meeting, the minister was convinced, beyond reasonable doubts, that there was foul play in the selection process and consequently ordered the cancellation of the report of the interview and directed that the vacancy for the post of Rector of Auchi Polytechnic be re-advertised.
This decision and directive was conveyed to the Polytechnic via a letter reference FME/S/1074/C4/111/303 dated May 14 2007 and signed by Otunba O.O Olapeju for the Minister.
The letter expressly stated that: “The submission of the Governing Council Chairman on the selection process for the Polytechnic Rector and the result of the meeting of the Minister with the Council Chairman, Management and representatives of the staff Unions of the Polytechnic refers, please.
“In line with the decision at the meeting, I am directed to request you to re-advertise the position of the Polytechnic Rector. I am also to remind you that it is compulsory for any prospective applicants to be holders of technology-based discipline”.
Meanwhile, the federal government under the present  leadership of Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar’Adua has gone ahead to appoint Dr. (Mrs.) Idogho as Rector of Auchi Polytechnic, despite the cancellation of the appointment interview report. An impeccable source said that her appointment as Rector of the Polytechnic was allegedly influenced by a former Deputy Governor of Edo State and currently Principal Secretary to the Vice President, Chief Mike Oghadiomhe who hails from the Rector’s local government area.       
“It was after this decision that Idogho started threatening the Chairman of ASUP, Auchi Polytechnic chapter (Mr. F.I. Idugie), that she would take steps to ensure that the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics, Auchi Polytechnic chapter is split into factions and rendered impotent.  And true to this threat, one Ibrahim Momoh authored and started to circulate offensive and instigating documents geared towards destroying the union and destabilising the administration at that time, in the middle of an examination”, Abayomi said. 
He posited that in pursuance of their determination to destabilise the Union, the said Momoh came to the floor of ASUP’s congress at Auchi Polytechnic to distribute papers with forged ASUP stationery, making spurious and outrageous allegations against the EXCO of the union, adding that, “the boys who were used in the distribution of the said documents were arrested by the then Dean of the School of Environmental Studies, J.A. B. Campbell and handed over to the Polytechnic’s security unit, but they were released from the custody of the security unit by the then Dean of School of Business Studies, F.U. Balogun (who is the acclaimed founder of a rebel group against ASUP, Auchi Polytechnic chapter, without authorisation from the Polytechnic management”.
Contrary to all advice, he said, “Abdurazak Momoh with a few unscrupulous elements started to parade themselves, illegally, as the EXCO of Auchi Polytechnic ASUP. They continue to issue and circulate libelous publications and write-ups against members of the elected and legitimate ASUP executive of Auchi Polytechnic and upon consideration of these misdemeanors, the congress of Auchi Polytechnic chapter of ASUP directed the union EXCO to query Momoh and his cohorts and when they refused to respond to the queries the congress felt slighted and passed a resolution at its meeting held on 16th July, 2007 to expel them, summarily and they were duly expelled from the union.
“Subsequently, the union reported the subversive activities of these expelled members to the Management of Auchi Polytechnic and ordered that their expelled members contributions as check-off dues to the Union be stopped forthwith. The national Exco of the Union was also duly informed of their expulsion and after an exhaustive deliberation on the issues leading to their expulsion, the national Exco ratified the expulsion. The names of these expelled members were published for the information of the general public on page 10 of ThisDay Newspaper of Sunday, July 29, 2007,” he said.
Continuing, Abayomi stated that “it was after this publication that these expelled members ran to a splitter group of ASUP then led by Muhammed Umar Kibya to obtain an illegal letter of recognition to usurp the position of the legitimately-elected ASUP executive of Auchi Polytechnic – even though they had never contested nor were they elected by the congress of Auchi Polytechnic ASUP,” pointing out that “there is no provision in ASUP constitution that allows the National Exco to hand-pick leaders for the Local Chapters; rather it is the local chapter of the Union that elects its EXCO and notifies the national body, so it is unthinkable that a National Exco of ASUP – legal or illegal – can hand-pick the leaders of a local chapter”. He said that the expelled members rushed to the Federal High Court Two at Benin (five months after their expulsion from the Union), to obtain an interim injunction restraining the duly elected Exco members of ASUP. Auchi Polytechnic chapter and the National President, Mallam Suleiman D. Alli from performing their legitimate functions.
Strangely,  he observed, “the ex-parte interim injunction, which was obtained on November 13, 2008, has not been lifted up till now, after 10 months.”
Abayomi stated that because of the interim injunction granted, the duly-elected Exco has been incapacitated while the expelled members who have unilaterally constituted themselves into an illegal Exco have continued to receive the favours, prerequisites, attention and privileges of the Union, even when their case in court challenging the Exco of the local chapter and the National President has not been determined, adding that Idogho who has been parading herself as the Rector of the institution, even went ahead to take a N100 million loan from Intercontinental Bank Plc to fund non-recognised ASUP factions in the institution internally.
But in a swift reaction, the Management of the Polytechnic through a press release denied that the N100 million loan was taken to facilitate the interests of ASUP. It described the allegation as baseless, adding that the Management of the Polytechnic did not negotiate or take any loan on behalf of anybody, group or interest from Intercontinental Bank Plc.
On the qualification of the Rector, the Management stated that it was aware that some members of staff are currently in court over the issue and as such, it is strange that a lawyer, A.B. Thomas, who has filed appropriate papers on behalf of his clients in respect of the matter in court, would resort to cheap blackmail calculated to embarrass the Polytechnic, its workers and students and the judiciary of which he is an officer.