Peter Obi Calls for FG’s Intervention in UNICAL Dental Students’ Crisis

Former Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi has called on the Federal Government to urgently intervene in the ongoing crisis affecting dental students at the University of Calabar (UNICAL), where issues surrounding graduation and induction quotas have raised serious concerns about students’ academic futures.

The crisis came to Obi’s attention following his visit to the Faculty of Dental Studies at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), where he was briefed about the developments at UNICAL. While acknowledging that the Vice Chancellor has assured the public that steps will be taken to resolve the situation, Obi emphasised the need for immediate federal support.

“No student should suffer due to what I consider a failure of leadership,” Obi stated in his public response to the crisis. “We must give our youth the necessary education, particularly in critical fields like science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Education in these areas is far too important to be jeopardised by bureaucratic or institutional lapses.”

The former Anambra State Governor drew from his personal experience when faced with a similar educational crisis during his tenure. He recalled how the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria shut down the medical school at Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University due to the absence of a teaching hospital, leaving students who had spent 3-4 years studying medicine facing the prospect of graduating only as biologists or in other science courses.

“I pleaded with the Council and told them that the children did not cause the issue and should not be made to suffer for it,” Obi recounted. “I promised to take full responsibility and committed to building a functional teaching hospital within two years. They told me it was impossible to build such a facility in two years. But I insisted, because leaders must be solution-driven, especially when the lives and futures of our young people are at stake.”

Obi successfully delivered on his promise, constructing and commissioning what is now known as the Odumegwu-Ojukwu Teaching Hospital in Awka in less than 18 months, thereby saving both the medical faculty’s accreditation and the futures of aspiring doctors.

Drawing parallels between the two situations, Obi issued a direct appeal to federal authorities: “I call on the Federal Government to give this situation the urgent and decisive attention it deserves by providing both financial and institutional support to the university leadership. The Vice Chancellor of the University of Calabar and her team must be empowered to resolve this issue immediately, to ensure that no student is made to suffer for circumstances that are in no way their fault.”

The former presidential candidate’s intervention highlights broader concerns about Nigeria’s educational system and the need for sustained investment in higher education, particularly in STEM fields. His statement also reflects growing calls for accountability and proactive leadership in addressing institutional challenges that affect students’ academic prospects.

“At this critical time in our nation, we cannot afford to continue the downward trend of neglecting education and healthcare, or of failing to lift people out of poverty, while wasting resources on areas that bring no tangible value,” Obi warned. “Our children must not continue to lose their future in Nigeria.”

The UNICAL dental students’ crisis represents yet another test of Nigeria’s commitment to educational excellence and the protection of students’ rights to quality higher education. As the situation continues to unfold, stakeholders await concrete action from both university leadership and federal authorities to ensure a swift and favourable resolution for the affected students.