| Polytechnic heads fight
for HND holders
By OYIN OSAWE
Monday, September 25, 2006
The Council of Heads of Polytechnics and Colleges of Technology(COHEADS)
rising from its 105th meeting held recently at the Lagos State
Polytechnic, Ikorodu, Lagos has called on the National Assembly
to hasten consideration on the bill addressing the parity
between B.Sc and HND holders in terms of employment and remuneration.
In a communiqué signed by Dr. J.E.O.Ovri,, Rector,
Delta State Polytechnic, Ogwashi-Ukwu, Delta State, the body
also noted that the accreditation of a new course, Mechatronics
by the National Board for Technical Education(NBTE) was a
welcome development but cautioned about the availability of
employment opportunities for products of the programme.
The body, reiterating the need for the 70:30 ratio for Science,
Engineering and Arts in programme offering at their institutions
to be achieved, said the teaching of science must be encouraged
from the primary schools. “This will enable adequate
cropping of students for TVE programmes in tertiary institutions.
Noting the gross inadequacy of university graduates who are
the main raw materials for the polytechnics as academic staff,
the body resolved that the National University Commission
should be more critical in the accreditation of their programmes
especially in Science and Technology.
Declaring open the event which held from September 19th to
22nd, Governor Bola Ahmed Tinubu,urged the COHEADS to take
more seriously the policy guiding their institutions about
admissions of more technology oriented students than management
oriented students.
Giving the admonition on behalf of his boss, Prof. Tunde Samuel,
Special Adviser to the Lagos State government, said the meeting
of the COHEADS should be used as a platform to fashion out
an enduring solution to the myriad of problems confronting
the technology education sector, and also to put the nation
on the path of irreversible development.
On his own part, the Executive Secretary, NBTE, Engineer Dr.
Nuru A. Yakubu, who was represented by a director at the organization,
Chief A. Oni said, the board sees the COHEADS as an indispensable
partner in the continuously challenging efforts at building
a successful and formidable polytechnic system in the country.Thus,
the effective and efficient management of polytechnics is
a cooperative responsibility involving NBTE as the regulatory
agency and the management of the polytechnics as managers.
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