Governor of Abia State, Okezie Ikpeazu, on Thursday, said the decision of the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) to withdraw the accreditation of Abia State Polytechnic is “embarrassing”.
Ikpeazu in a statement issued by the state secretary, Chris Ezem, described NBTE’s action as capable of jeopardising the faith of students in the institution.
According to the Governor, Academic activities have been ongoing in the institution without interruptions; the teachers and staff of Abiapoly were not on strike and have remained committed to their duties
While announcing the immediate dissolution and suspension of the council and management of the institution, the governor also approved the constitution of a 6-man task force to restore the Accreditation within 30 days.
In his words, “The government views the decision of NBTE against the institution as very embarrassing and capable of destabilizing the current peace and harmony existing in the state, as the fate of the students of the institution appears to be jeopardized by the said action,” the statement reads.
“It must be placed on record that Academic activities have been ongoing in the institution without interruptions; the teachers and staff of Abiapoly were not on strike and have remained committed to their duties.
“As part of the measure to reposition the institution, Government hereby announces the immediate dissolution and suspension of the council and management of the institution respectively.
“In line with the foregoing, the government has approved the constitution of a 6-man task force to restore the Accreditation of Abia Poly within 30 days”.
It would be recalled that the Abia League of Professionals Initiative (ALPI), had on Wednesday, described the withdrawal of accreditation status of the Institution as a huge embarrassment.
APLI in a statement issued by the Director-General, Sonny Iroche, demanded an explicit explanation from the state government on why the educational sector of the state has degraded so much.
The group also called for a forensic audit of the Abia State Polytechnic and the Medical School of the Abia State University.
This comes after the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), on Tuesday, announced the withdrawal of Abia State Polytechnic accreditation status, due to the non-payment of staff salaries and allowances for over 30 months.
