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Professor John G. Laah of the Department of Geography, Kaduna State University (KASU), has said that the Federal University of Applied Sciences, to be located in Southern Kaduna, will create many job opportunities and bring rapid development to the area, Kaduna State, and Nigeria as a whole.
In an interaction with select Journalists in Kaduna, Professor La’ah who represents the Forum of Southern Kaduna Professors, the Southern Kaduna Academics and the university staff for good governance, commended the Senator representing Southern Kaduna Senatorial District, Senator Sunday Marshall Katung (SMK)for initiating the Bill for the establishment of the University and expressed hope that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will soon ascent the bill into law.
According to him,” We are at the forefront of having a university in the southern part of Kaduna state. Our forum is not the forum only for zone three; it is a forum of Southern Kaduna. Our definition of Southern Kaduna is all Local Governments from Chikun down, which covers 12 Local Government areas in Kaduna State. Our forum has 186 members. And these 186 members are not foreigners; they are all Professors from Southern Kaduna.”
Going down memory lane, the University Don said, “In 2018, we had the privilege of pushing for this university, and of course, under Senator Danjuma Laah, the immediate past Senator that represented the zone, it was Federal University of Science and Technology Manchok. But the truth is that there was a bill to convert the Federal School of Statistics to the Federal University of Science and Technology. Unfortunately, the bill was not passed then.”
“But when Sunday Marshal came on board, the first thing he did was approach us from the onset to notify us he was willing to come and challenge whoever, and he wanted to present his credentials. He spoke to us, but you know education is our industry in Southern Kaduna. We are also very considerate that we have young ones who must be trained in appropriate education and technology. So we told him we were so happy to have him come on board. But our focus is that anybody coming should try as much as possible to ensure the federal presence is felt in the southern part. And that we needed a university— simply because it is probably within the number and terms of population. We don’t have a Federal University in the area within the radius.”
“And of course, Senator Marshall picked up the challenge, and that was why immediately after he was inaugurated last year, within a month, we had the first reading of the Federal University of Applied Sciences. And then a lot of misinformation came out. There were deliberate falsehoods about why he did not pursue the plan made by his predecessor to have a Federal University of Science and Technology. But I need to tell you that in the present system of Nigeria, once the president approves the university, it will be the first and the only Federal University of Applied Sciences. We have the Federal University of Science and Technology. We have the Federal University of Health Sciences, but this will be the first Applied Science university.”
“And I think it was also based on the fact that he did a lot of consultation with stakeholders, with the Southern Kaduna professors, Southern Kaduna academics, traditional rulers, the Southern Kaduna leadership council and previous senators, and we agreed that this university is not a Southern Kaduna University of Applied Sciences— it is a Federal University of Applied Sciences.”
“Our idea is just to have the location within the southern part. What are the reasons? Once the university is located in the south part, it is likely to engineer some development, grant our youths, mainly the unemployed, and promote social vices to gain productive engagement. So establishment of this university is dear to us as professors and as southern Kaduna Academics.
“And we interacted very well With ASUU nationals. ASUU national opposed the Federal University of Science and Technology. But of course, at the Federal University of Applied Sciences, we have not had a single objection from ASUU, which means they are more comfortable with the university.
“Now, this university was proposed for Manchok. When we went for a public hearing, it was the Federal University of Applied Sciences abinitio. And, of course, you know that the Senator is from Zango’s Kataf Council. And Manchok is in another local government, so we appreciated his desire to have a university elsewhere other than his local government.”
When asked why the change of location from Manchok to Kachia, he said, “Of course, if you know the argument of the Federal University of Science and Technology— the argument was that objection for most people, especially from the southern part, was that the senator was taking everything to his local government. But I think this time around, we supported him. I must also say this.. the decision to change the university from Manchok to Kachia is a child of necessity. Our commitment is to reduce the obstacles toward having a Federal University in Southern Kaduna, and to reduce the obstacle, the decision to support Kachia came on board. And I must tell you that the Southern Kaduna professors were part of the decision. We were consulted, and we acted; we contributed.”
“Now you know that we had Nok University, which had already admitted students before its closure. When people talk about Kachia, it is the decision of the senators, the stakeholders, the Southern Kaduna professors, and Southern Kaduna academics to say we already have five faculties in Kachia. Reducing costs is a way to reduce the obstacles to having a university. Part of the desire to reduce costs is that the government will be reluctant to pay several billion to start the structure when already having a structure that is fully on the ground. And so, we now suggest that it should be the University of Applied Sciences Kachia. We will have a campus in Kachia and have one there, too,” he explained.
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