The senate of the University of Ibadan has decided to recall its undergraduate students to resume academic activities and fixed first semester examinations of the 2016/2017 academic session for Tuesday, 4 July, 2017.
In a statement by the University’s Director of Public Communication, Mr. Olatunji Oladejo made available on Friday evening, the students are expected to arrive on campus as from Sunday, 2 July, 2017.
The decision was based on the consideration of an interim report of an Ad-hoc Committee on Students’ Crisis that was set up to look into the immediate and remote cause(s) of the recent students’ protest of Monday, 29 May, 2017 which senate considered at its special meeting on Friday, 23 June, 2017.
By this decision, the 2016/2017 first semester examinations will commence on Tuesday, 04 July, 2017 in various Faculties in the University, while students will be allowed into examination halls on presentation of their course registration forms in which their passport photographs are affixed.
The Senate noted that the conduct of examination is “dictated by senate and not the students’ union executive council as all activities of the University are guided and regulated by the University of Ibadan Act.”
On the alleged ”political victimisation” of some students, the Senate noted that “students that appeared before the disciplinary committees at the faculty levels and jointly committed offences committee and thereafter, referred to the central students’ disciplinary committee cannot be classified as victimised as fair hearing and disciplinary processes were followed and those found guilty of misconduct were given the opportunity to further appeal to the University council for review of their cases.”
As a corollary to the above, it stressed that “such students cannot circumvent the laid down procedure and structure by hiding under the umbrella of students’ union executive council to instigate protest under the camouflage of precipitating student-mob action.’’
“They should explore the statutory options for redress and cannot resort to self-help mechanism”, the senate stressed.
On the use of hot plates and other unauthorized electrical appliances, senate noted the earlier report of Prof. Adeboye Olatunbosun’s committee on energy consumption in the University which provided the details of huge electricity bills, fire risk, dangerous and poor use of the facilities, and decided that ‘an implementation machinery may be set up to engage students on the working modalities.” the management added.