Rector Kwara State Polytechnic Alhaji Mas’ud Elelu ascribed the seemingly peaceful atmosphere and reduction of vices in the institution to the inclusion of students in the scheme of things that affects them in the institution

Elelu disclosed it is a common phenomenon in Nigerian higher institutions that Students Union Election is usually brutal because of vested interest from certain quarters, but since the assumption in 2009, about five SUG elections had been held under peaceful atmosphere because the management gave them free hands to choose their leaders.

He pointed that the institution always take part in the election of union leaders by supervision the whole process from beginning to the end, where elections were held in auditorium, ballot boxes were placed in front of the Rector and the counting done in the full glare of the students.

According to him, “After the process the losers will openly congratulate the winners of the elections which are keenly contested.

“The Management did not only give them free hand but went a little bit beyond that, especially in the area of managing their funds and instilled the sense of responsibility in every SUG government in such a way that the SUG levy is put as part of school fees.

“The leadership of the Polytechnic do ask for the SUG budget to know what they want to do after the approval of the parliament, they are then advised to do something for the Polytechnic from the budget thereby teaching them the value of social responsibility.

“Management handover the money but always task them to present a proposal on how the money will be spent, and they have been forthcoming embarking on numerous projects within the school for the usage and benefits of the students,” he stated.

Elelu also added that as part of the institution’s effort to improve students’ welfare and ensure they had a conducive environment for learning, all full-time students of Kwara State Polytechnic, Ilorin, now have access to quality healthcare services through registration in the National Health Insurance Scheme, NHIS.