IMT Enugu Vigorously Denies Allegations, Stands Firm on Commitment to Transparency

Enugu’s Institute of Management and Technology (IMT) has forcefully contested the allegations presented in a recent Vanguard Newspaper article dated August 6th, 2023. The Institute’s Management has addressed these accusations made by certain internal individuals, stating that their motives are to smear both the Institute and its Management and Council.

The Management refuted these claims, highlighting the rigorous staff appointment approval process, well-defined protocols for addressing reported cases, and utilization of land sale proceeds for infrastructure growth. The report emphasizes the Institute’s unwavering dedication to transparency, dismissing the accusations as groundless and malicious.

The Institute acknowledged the invaluable contributions of former Governor Rt. Hon Dr. Lawrence Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi to IMT’s advancement and urged responsible journalism, urging Vanguard Newspaper to reconsider their publication given the inaccuracies presented.

In a report published in Daily SUN on Thursday, 10th of August 2023, the management of the Institute of Management and Technology (IMT) Enugu responded to the misleading allegations as stated thus;

The attention of the Institute of Management and Technology (IMT), Enugu has been drawn to a story published in Vanguard Newspaper dated 6th of August, 2023 by mischief makers and elements in the Institute who are determined to smear and tarnish the image of the Institute and by extension the Management and Council. The Management in its wisdom has looked at the issues raised in the said publication and react thus:

That the appointment of staff into the Institute has never and will never be done without the express approval of the Governor through the Governing Council. Note that since the inception of this Management and Council, the Enugu State Government has given no formal approval for Employment and, as such, the Institute has not made any Employments. Secondly, the Council based on the recommendation of Management does the appointment of the staff into Headship positions and it is usually based on seniority and merit. Note that the composition of the Council of the Institute follows geo-political spread and, as a result, no Council member will seat and watch his zone marginalized. However, following the State Government’s recent demand for submissions from MDAs to enable the Government look at the state of affairs, IMT made a submission showing the number of staff in the Institute and indicated the ratio according to which they were divided among the local government areas of the State. That document should speak for itself and will be made available on demand for anyone who cares to go through it.

That the Academic Board (AB) of the Institute has met three times this session, the last of which was on 26th July 2023. The Business Committee (BC) is a long Standing Committee of the AB with no approval powers. AB meetings are statutory and cannot be circumvented for any reason.

That the Academic Board has a procedure for dealing with all reported cases of missing scripts. The AB in dealing with cases has applied the procedure in the past and present. The staff that had been found culpable in the past were given appropriate punishment. The evidence is there to prove this.

That all those who accept part-time appointment in the Institute know through their Letters of Appointment what their remunerations are and that does not in any form justify any untoward behavoiur. The Council has on different occasions sacked those erring staff with proven cases of misconduct, extortion and sexual harassment. Meanwhile, majority of the staff on part-time appointment are those who are on full-time appointment elsewhere. We have such staff coming from ESUT, UNN and other institutions around Enugu.

That the allegation of NYSC call up racketeering is nebulous and unfounded because Call Up Letters are printed on-line by prospective corps members themselves. This has been the procedure for so many years now and is not peculiar to IMT.

Proceeds from the sale of Land belonging to the Institute in Abuja has been utilized by the Institute following the Council’s approval to provide infrastructure for the use of both staff and students. A modern Academic complex with Solar and other modern features and facilities has been completed from the said proceeds and duly handed over for Academic use of Staff and Students as approved by Council. The evidence is there for all to see. Therefore, the allegations are not just false but outright baseless lies meant to destroy the image of the Institute and by extension, the Council and Management.

On the issue of the appointment of the Deputy Rector, the Extant Law is that the Academic Board shall elect fit and proper persons provided that the person is a member of the Academic Board. The recommendation of the Academic Board and the subsequent appointment of the current Deputy Rector did not offend any known Law. He emerged from a keenly contested election of the Academic Board. The Council called for the interview of the top three contenders but only the two top runners showed up for the interview. The highest scorer from the interview of the Academic Board came tops at the interview conducted by the Council and he was approved by Council to be appointed the Deputy Rector. Beyond Chief Lecturers, anyone who is a member of the Academic Board irrespective of rank is qualified for the role. The current Deputy Rector has been a member of the Academic before his appointment. This allegation is ridiculous and lacks any merit.

It is quite unfortunate that the writer’s of this spurious article had to drag the name of the former Governor, Rt. Hon Dr. Lawrence Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi into their article. Truth must be told, IMT enjoyed a lot of interventions under the former Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi. The lists of interventions in IMT between 2016 to May 2023 are too numerous to mention. However, for the sake of history, we will take a little space to itemize some of the major interventions that have made IMT stand out amongst the league of polytechnics in Nigeria. These include but are not limited to the following:

Nature of Physical Infrastructure:

• Reroofing and Repainting of the Administrative Block.
• Remodeling of the Old Mass Communication Block.
• Construction of Sound Proof TV Control Rooms in the Department of Mass Communication.
• Construction of a two-storey modern and fully furnished Block of Class Rooms.
• Construction of a two-storey modern and fully furnished Block of Staff Offices.
• Construction of a Block of Medical Centre [Bungalow].
• Construction of a modern one-Storey building furnished Block of Registry Offices.
• Construction of two Blocks of Conveniences for the Staff and Students.
• Procurement and Installation of new Equipment and Refurbishment of the Existing Obsolete Equipment in the Department of Chemical Engineering, Electronics Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Hospitality Management, Building Technology and Quantity Surveying, Agricultural and Bio-Technology Engineering and Fine Arts and Graphic Design.
• Procurement and Installation of new Equipment and Refurbishment of the Existing Obsolete Equipment in the following Laboratories of the Department of Civil Engineering: Soil, Structure, Concrete, Transportation, Survey Studio and Hydrology.
• Procurement and Supply of Office Equipment, Computer Hardware, HP all-in-one Printers, Copiers Scanners and UPS for all Departments and for Administrative Offices.
• Procurement and Supply of Office Equipment, Digital Cameras, Drawing Boards, Furniture and Fittings and Stools for Department of Architecture.