By EMMANUEL AHANONU, UNICAL
A new lease of life greeted staff and students of University of Calabar (UNICAL) recently, when they met at the school’s new Faculty of Arts Auditorium to rededicate the institution after its nearly six months closure. The closure was as a result of students riot last August.

In his opening remark, the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. James Epoke welcomed students back on campus after six months of academic shutdown, while enumerating the numerous achievements in the institution since the vacation.

“May I use this opportunity to welcome our dear students back to this place that has been shut for nearly six months, as a result of the mayhem wreaked by less than 200 students on a university that is made up of more than 30,000 students and 5,000 staff.

We are here to ask God that this type of thing should never happen again.” On the infrastructure development, the VC opined that “there is now internet access in all parts of the institution for registered students, public address system in the classrooms and enough seats in the classrooms.”

Epoke said “there is now zero-tolerance for ‘sorting’, all results are to be published within a month after each examination, students will henceforth go for their National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) with their certificates.”

Continuing, he said: “We are still working on the hydro power project that will be supplying constant light to the institution, there is green light for our Engineering Faculty, admission is for those who merit it, it is not for sale. We are also to construct more classrooms for Education Faculty, among other projects.”

All the students that spoke with Quadlife expressed happiness at the pace of development so far and commended the VC and the management staff for their goodwill towards the students.

One of them, Rt. Hon. Tony White in an exclusive interview said: “The best thing I will never fail to commend the V.C for, is the suspension of Students Union Government for the time being’, because the leaders of the suspended dispensation allowed their personal interest to conflict with their official conducts.”