From Ameachi Prosper (The New Diplomat’s Delta State Correspondent)
Delta State Government has advanced the reasons why it is making moves to convert three higher institutions in the state to three separate Universities.
The Commissioner for Higher Education, Prof. Patrick Moboughare, who addressed a media briefing in Asaba said the state was wasting huge resources in the three colleges of education Agbor, Warri and Mosogar in the state, noting that the staff strengths of the three colleges are 1,895 handling 2,888 students with wage bills of N457,570,402,76 monthly because people don’t want to go colleges of education anymore.
Recalled that governor Ifeanyi Okowa on Tuesday sent Executive Bills to the State House of Assembly, seeking to convert college of education, Agbor to become university of education, Delta State polytechnic, Ozoro to become university of Science and Technology and Delta State University, Anwai campus to become a university of Science and Agriculture.
The Commissioner maintained that the conversion of the institutions to universities was inline with the federal government policy to phase out the Higher National Diploma HND.
Explaining further, he said during the 2019 and 2020 admission exercise, 25,896 candidates chose the Delta State University DELSU, as first choice.
“Out of the numbers, 22,358 qualified, applied for and wrote the post UTME examination. Only 4,854 could find space, leaving the remaining 21,042 candidates stranded and hopeless,” Moboughare said.
