Benue State University, Makurdi

It has caught the attention of Management of Benue State University, Makurdi, a write up by one Awuna Pius Terwase published in the Blueprint newspaper of Monday, 24th July, 2023 with the above caption.

In the said article, the writer himself reveals that he is a graduate of Benue State University, Makurdi, and goes ahead to raise allegations of extortion of students by lecturers and graduates of the University by staff in various offices.

However, this approach by the writer falls short of the expectation of Management from Alumni of the University as he has not shown evidence of any attempts to resolve whatever challenges or grievances before resorting to the public court.

For this reason, the University would like to take some of the allegations from the write-up with a grain of salt. This is because, the writer has, since 2016, been in the habit of churning out such disparaging articles.

It is baffling that this alumnus of the University has not for once written an article to acknowledge, even if just one, of the numerous feats attained by either students or staff of the University from which he graduated.

The expectations of the University Management from her alumni is that in cases such as Awunah seeks to highlight, the proper channels for redress should be exhausted before resorting to media trial such as done by him.

To seek explanations, or even redress for perceived grievances, he could have approached the Vice-Chancellor, the Registrar or even the University Governing Council.

The University is not oblivious of existing challenges involving processing of Transcripts, timely release of results and verification of certificates and because of that, Management has taken far reaching policy initiatives whose implementation have commenced.

On allegations of sales of handouts by Lecturers, for instance, students are told at the point of entering the University, that is during Matriculation, that they should report such cases to the Dean, Students Affairs or the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) who will escalate their complaints to the Vie-Chancellor and ultimately the University Senate.

The University’s Students Handbook contains detailed information on the Dos and Don’ts, of the University both on the part of students and staff alike

Similarly, graduates of Benue State University who apply for Transcripts and pay the prescribed fees, like is done in every other University, without attempting to cut corners, need not complain of being extorted by any staff as staff are aware that such illicit transactions could attract sanctions on them, if discovered at any stage.

For graduates of the University desirous of services such as verification of result, Transmission of Transcripts or collection of Transcripts, as the case of Fanen Andrew Nyiter, mentioned in the write up, it is a disservice to the University for them not to report such an unsavory encounter to the Alumni President or even the University Registrar.

Nevertheless, to prove that the present Management of the University under Professor Tor Joe Iorapuu as Vice-Chancellor has zero-tolerance for malpractices of any kind, the University has set up a fact-finding committee to pry into activities such as processing of Examinations, Transmission of Transcripts and Results verification, etc.

The essence is to reassure the general public that the University does not condone sharp practices whatsoever and that those who deviate from this norm risk paying heavily for such infractions.

To prove that this promise is not a fluke, a formal invitation shall be extended to Mr. Awunah Pius Terpase who has expressed his willingness to do so “…at the appropriate time”, when “everything will be made public.”