By Emma Amaize
WARRI—THE National Universities Commission, NUC, fact-finding team to Federal University of Petroleum Resources FUPRE, led by Prof. Alhassan Bichi, has discovered that none of the degree programmes offered by the university could be accredited because the institution does not have enough lecturers.

Meanwhile, the institution’s chapter of Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, weekend, called off the work-to-rule it declared last month over alleged one-sided actions by Minister of Education on the affairs of the institution.

The union’s Chairman, Dr. Akpofure Rim-Rukeh, confirmed to Vanguard that the work-to-rule was being suspended to enable the Prof Bichi-led team, which had been directed to take over and streamline academic programmes of the university, do a thorough job.

The union leader said the team cannot get good results if the work-to-rule remained in place. Vanguard gathered that the Bichi team has suggested that more professors and lecturers be employed, while advising staff to bury their differences and work together for accreditation of the institution’s courses.

A source told Vanguard: “Prof. Bichi and his team are going round senior management staff, appealing to them to bury the hatchet so that the university can move forward.

“It is a pity that despite the funds made available to the institution by the Fede-ral Government, none of our academic programmes can be accredited because of incompetence of those employed to manage the institution.

“Can you imagine that professors and lecturers from other institutions were prevented by a cabal in FUPRE from transferring their services to the university even when they had been cleared by their institutions?

“Some people here neither wanted competition nor those that can look them in the face and tell them some home truths.”