By Wole Adedeji, Ilorin
A total number of 8,350 students of the Kwara State Polytechnic, Ilorin graduated on Thursday at the 29th Convocation ceremony of the institution.
3, 000 of the figure obtained Higher National Diploma (HND) while 3,350 of them were National Diploma (ND) graduates. 102 of them were in the distinction and Upper Credit category, according to the Rector, Engr. Dr. Abdul Jimoh Mohammed in his convocation address.
He had earlier at a press briefing said the institution had persistently been bedeviled with the strongest menace of land encroachers on the polytechnic land who also had the effrontery to drag the school to court even when compensations had been fully paid land owners by government since November, 1974.
The encroachment activities in the institution, according to the Rector had made the school porous whereby its permanent campus allows neighbouring villages and communities to come in and out if the school unchecked from every side.
He lamented that the situation had constituted worrisome sight of unauthorised structures on both sides of the road leading to the institution as well as their other surroundings posing possible challenges to the security of the school.
The Rector disclosed that to forestall this possible breach of security occasioned by the porosity, the Polytechnic had spent huge amount of money in partnering with security agencies such as the Nigerian Army, the Nigerian Police Force, Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps, the Vigilante Groups to secure the institution.
Engr. AbdulJimoh Mohammed said aside this, as expected in any human endeavour, they are also facing other challenges such as funding, accreditation of programmes, aging structures, which calls for government’s urgent attentions.
However, the Rector praised the current government in the State who unlike in the past, had been up and doing to bail the polytechnic out of its huge challenges.
He called on the government to kindly do more for the school which is rated as one of the technology compliant polytechnics and most sought-after, in the country in order to make it continue to remain at the forefront.
He listed his administration’s achievements since he came into office in 2019 in addition to the completion of eleven set physical projects that he reported last convocation, he had also installed a 33kva power project courtesy of the supports of the governor and visitor to the school.
The Rector also disclosed that the current appraisal of his achievements included renovation of IOT complex, Construction of drainages, Landscaping/construction of walkways, Centralised online Research Assessment
and Submission System, Renovation of old Library, Solar Power Projects among others.
Speaking at the occasion, Dr. Mary Ronke Arinde, the Commissioner for Tertiary Education who represented Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq at the event commended the Polytechnic for doing the State proud in all sphere of academic teaching and learning pointing out that products of the institution are found in large number across the country doing extra ordinarily well.