Except a caution is applied in the appointment of a new rector for the Federal Polytechnic Offa (FEDPOFFA), Kwara State, the once peaceful campus may be thrown into chaos. This is as a result of the appointment of a successor to Dr. Mufutau Olatinwo whose tenure expired recently after serving the school for two terms. As usual, the polytechnic has always witnessed this kind of scenario just like every other public tertiary school in the country as members of the polytechnic community are already in disagreement on the profile of who becomes the next rector. Our correspondent who visited the main campus of the institution last week observed that crisis was gradually brewing as the leaderships of the two staff unions accused the management of bias in its selection style and procedure so far.

While attributing whatever crisis and it likely consequences that may follow the appointment to the management and representative of the Minister of Education, the Chairman of the institution's branch of the Senior Staff Association of Nigeria Polytechnics, SSANIP, Chief Ayodeji Bankole and his Non-Academic Staff Union, NASU, counterpart, Mr. Emmanuel Alli accused both the minister's representative and the management of being biased in their selection judgment so far. They said the two sides responsible for the selection were not only insincere in their judgment but seemed to have sacrifice merit in their decision.

They said the manner the officers in charge of the appointment pruned down the long list of 32 applicants to 13 and later to eight was done in bad faith as the method used according to them was strange in any screening exercise known to the 24-year-old polytechnic. Bankole, for instance, explained that SSANIP was in total disagreement with the first screening, saying the exercise schemed out many qualified and interested persons in the position as advertised by the Registrar of the school, Mallam Hammid Raji last December. "What they did was at variance with the newspaper advertisement for the position and we pointed this out at a meeting with the acting rector with the expectation that they would correct the error.

But we were surprised to see that they went ahead with the second screening and still shut out those 21 FUTA, British universities partner to tackle human habitat challenges who should have been there on merit but accommodated those who should not have even made the list," he noted. Explaining further, he said, "What we know is that the advertisement specifically asked for an applicant who must be a member of staff of the polytechnic, be a chief lecturer and most importantly must be a lecturer from a graduating department in the school. This last condition means that any lecturer who is teaching a non major course is not eligible. But while those who fall in the preferred areas of teaching were dropped, many of those who are out of this requirement were invited for interview scheduled to hold in Abuja, the federal capital territory."

Because of this development, National Mirror gathered, three of the applicants who were dissatisfied with the outcome of the screening went on protest which the union members joined. "That was why we called the Executive Secretary of the National Board for Technical Education not relevant in this matter," he added. Now, what appears most strange in the matter according to them is that the Acting Rector, Dr. Ayo Olaosebikan, also an applicant is not just a member of the Expanded Management Committee but also the Chairman of the committee that screened the candidates. "What do you expect?" Bankole queried. The committee of course cleared her while many of those who met the requirements as advertised in the newspapers were dropped. When we protested the action, she told us she left the meeting when her own case was to be determined. Another hiccup is that the same registrar who signed the advertisement also served in the committee that worked outside the guidelines prescribed in the advert.

"For instance, the acting rector studied English Language and Cultural Communication in her first and second degree and what she has been teaching all along is the Use of English. But in the polytechnic system, we don’t graduate students in English language and there is nothing like Cultural Communication but Mass Communication in the system. So, from all indications, the acting rector does not qualify to apply let alone cleared at the screening. We should not also forget that she presided over her own screening. It is neither that we are against her person nor that we have a particular candidate in mind over others, our stand is for people in charge to do things in the right way. We want a new leader to emerge through due process. "But part of the problem is the representative of the minister who knows the right thing but doing otherwise. The registrar who also signed and placed the advertisement is another problem because as the secretary to the committee, he is expected to stand on the truth.

Corroborating him, the chairman of NASU, Mr. Emmanuel Alli told National Mirror that his union took the position not to witch hunt anybody but only interested in transparency in the selection exercise that would produce the next leader. "We are only trying to follow what the advert specified and nothing more. Anything short of this will create crisis which we don't pray for. We want peace to reign supreme in our polytechnic," he stressed. Beside the union leaders, who are clamouring for fair play and transparency in the whole exercise, two among the aggrieved applicants, Dr. M.A Fowomola and Mr. A.T Otunola had since sent petitions to the NBTE in Kaduna for intervention to save the school from impending crisis.

Meanwhile, the number of aspirants has been narrowed to two –the Acting Rector, Dr. Ayo Olaosebikan and Dr. Olatunji from the original nine aspirants following the interview held in Abuja penultimate Monday. However, there were still complaints from the staff that Dr. Olaosebikan had her doctoral degeree online from the Harvard University, USA. The qualification, according to them negates the new directive by the Federal Ministry of Education that online doctor of Philosophy, PhD holders could no longer be accommodated in the academics. However, in his reaction to the claims against the Acting Rector, Mr. Ladi Badmus, the polytechnic Public Relations Officer debunked the claims by the staff unions, saying there was no basis for their allegation. Speaking on the allegation that the Ag. Rector was the chairman of the committee that screened the aspirants including herself, Badmus said it was the Deputy Rector, Academics that stood in for her during the screening.

Also, he denied the fact that the Acting Rector does not have her degrees in related programmes in the polytechnic. According to him, Dr. Ayo Olaosebikan had her first degree in English, Cultural Communication for her second and doctoral degrees. He added that the vacancy advertisement in the Daily Trust of December 15, 2015 for the position didn't ask for 'Chief lecturers' in a major department that has been producing graduates but in any of the courses in the school. Also, he averred that the fact that the rector had her PhD online from USA does not inhibit her qualification for the post. Badmus said no one had come up with a proof that he or she had made enquiries from Harvard University and the university disclaims her as their old student.

"Dr. Olaosebikan attended her PhD graduation in America. That the Education Ministry stopped further engagement of online PhD holders does not sack those who had gotten their degrees years before that directive was given", the polytechnic spokesman added.