Saturday Vanguard expose gross corruption in IMT Enugu.

The issue of academic exploitation in the nation’s tertiary institutions is
on the increase. It involves lecturers selling their books, some of them poorly
produced, and handouts at very high costs
to students. Sorting, a term used to qualify all manner of money-for-mark practices in the system is now a common practices in our institutions.

There is illegal mobilisation for placement of students who still have some courses to pass for National Service. These are some of the problems affecting many institutions in Nigeria. Some lecturers and other staff who do not indulge are afraid to report for fear of
victimization from their management.

At the Enugu State owned once prestigious Institute of Management & Technology, IMT, these practices and more other illegal conducts are threatening to completely destroy the school. Multiple sources, staff of the institution who interacted with Saturday Vanguard on the happenings in IMT painted a very gloomy picture of the once respected institution.

They cited common ills bedevilling the school
to include lack of accountability, no diligent supervision of the activities in the school by the management; nepotism in appointment and recruitment of staff, academic fraud, gross violation of the act
establishing the institution allegedly, dereliction of duties, economic sabotage, among other things. A teacher in the school accused the management of “rascal violations of IMT laws” which he said have been working against the institution. Business committee and academic recklessness, an anomaly.

The management was accused of setting up an illegal body called Business Committee to take over duties that are the exclusive jurisdictions of the academic board of the institution. This, it was learned has been affecting the academic input of the school such that there was an illegal decision to award free 30 marks or more as examination scores to some ex-ND students of 2021/2022 academic session of the Department of Agric and Bio-environmental engineering whose examination answer scripts in entrepreneurial studies were purportedly missing due to the carelessness of a lecturer, a clear case of academic fraud. Extortion thrives and the beneficiaries live large.

Findings indicate that a lot of extortions go on in the institution by the lecturers from the students. And the management of the school is accused of creating veritable environment for such illegal act. For
instance, it was learned that lecturers on part time basis are paid paltry N50,000 per semester of five or six months. How can such persons survive with their families? Their alternative is to make up by
extorting the students. Some are said to be doing ‘well’ in that, buying cars and owning properties. The situation alarmed a staff who in an online message said: “My dear brothers and sisters, why are we standing on a bridge and be lifting the bridge? How can you pay a part-time lecturer in a tertiary institution in Enugu N50,000.00 per semester of six months and expect quality education and proper conduct? “Meanwhile, while in the N50, 000.00 six months employment, he gave gratification to get the job. Why are we pretending that we don’t know what is happening? Let us help Mbah handle this matter and help our education system. Prof. Oji’s committee may start with this. This is the job of ‘Leaders of thought’’ “As a matter of fact, it is the examination hall that has been put on sale to the students. The Institute is fully commercialized.
Consequently, we have different products for purchase either in cash or in kind. “Examination scores, continuous assessment scores, headship appointments, directorship appointments, assignment of classes to lecturers to teach; assigning students’ projects to supervisors, mobilization of non-graduates to National Youth Service etc, are the order of the day.”

Allegation of nepotism
The management of IMT is also accused of encouraging nepotism in employment and appointment in the institution, which they claim is a deliberate violation of chapter 2 sub- 2.3 of
the conditions of service for appointments/recruitments. They claim that management favours Enugu North zone in appointments and recruitment of workers, citing example of two ladies
from his area. “To worsen the situation, a Senior Lecturer who is not qualified by the NBTE strict provision to head a Department that awards HND, is now the Deputy Rector of the institution. It is wrong and against academic progress for a senior Lecturer to be a Deputy Rector; it is against Section 9(2) of the Polytechnic Act which states that the Council shall appoint the Deputy Rector from among the Chief Lecturers in the Polytechnic. This is a reckless violation of the statutory act and done purely for personal and political interest”, an aggrieved Chief lecturer lamented.
According to a lecturer who spoke to Saturday Vanguard, the school started its declining journey in the last six years when the current during administration came in place.
“The story of the past six years or more, of the current leadership of the Institute is no doubt, overflowing with tears of applause for evil and tolling jeers for honesty, principles, values, dedication and
commitment to duty”. Some concerned staff of the institution heaped the blame for the rot in the school on the door steps of the immediate past administration of Chief Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi and they are calling on Governor Peter Mbah to wade in to save IMT from imminent total collapse.

One of them said: “I express my disappointment with the immediate past State Government’s response to the executive lawlessness at IMT Enugu between 2016 and 2020 when despite a lot of evidence of misconduct and inefficiency; they went ahead to elongate leadership of the institute. The immediate past Government shielded them which encouraged them to violate acts and rules of the institution. This has brought the institute’s image to shame and desolation.

“Today, public confidence in the Institute is utterly eroded to the precipice that the students admitted by the Institute on yearly basis are fundamentally those who cannot persuade well-managed academic institutions by their poor academic performances in the Joint Administration and Matriculation Board’s examination to admit them. The solid foundation of the school has eroded”. Academic fraud and NYSC call-up racketeering. Added to the numerous ills in the school is alleged NYSC call-up racketeering. Some fraudulent staff of the school allegedly engage in issuing call-up letter to students yet to graduate. A case in point was that of one Ede Onyinye Lillian (MKT/H2012/201) who was said to have been mobilized and later recalled from the NYSC, and no punishment was meted to the Director of Student Affairs for this heinous act of national embarrassment for mobilizing her despite being aware that she did not graduate.

Reckless spending
The management was accused of spending more than N100 million in August 2022 or thereabout to procure 5 cars for Principal Officers as their take home severance entitlement when their appointments were yet to be severed. Also, the Governing Council in February 2022 or thereabout sold IMT land in Abuja on the purported claim that it was under the threat of revocation. More than N200M was said be realized from the sale of the said property. A source from the institution said the decision to sell the land was in bad fate . According to him, at the Governing Council meeting of 27th April 2021, where the plot to sell the property was hatched, it was decided, that the proceeds realized from the transaction be utilized for physical infrastructural development in the Institute” and “that the Institute should engage an Agent or a Professional in Real Estate to facilitate the transaction. “However, in a later Council meeting of April 2022 after receipt of payment for the said property in February 2022, Council abandoned its earlier decision of 27th April 2021 and decided that “the proceeds from the Abuja land sales should be used to put up a structure that will be named after somebody who facilitated the sale of the property..
Several calls and text messages to the Rector of the Institute, Professor Austin Nweze were not answered or replied and the PRO of the school Barrister Mark Eze said that the Rector just lost his elder brother, Justice Centus Nweze and would not be in the mood to react now. He also declined comment as PRO of the school, preferring to wait for the approval of the Rector or probably after the funerals. Said Eze in a text message: “Wait for us to get approval from the Rector. He is in Abuja. “Death is death and not tea party. Please, wait till the Rector comes back to enable us talk with him. I will appear insensitive if I call him to discuss this issue while he is trying to pick the body of his late elder brother. We met this morning and decided we should give him that benefit of doubt. The brother’s corpse was supposed to come into Enugu today. They couldn’t come back because of the weather problems. The death of Justice CC Nweze is a national issue far and above so many things. Thank you.”

credit :Saturday Vanguard