Wike Left 2,000 Hectares Of Mountain For UniAbuja – Pro-Chancellor

The Pro-Chancellor of the University of Abuja, Sen. Olanrewaju Tejuoso, has reacted to the controversy surrounding the retrieval of the university’s land by the Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike.

According to Tejuoso, the 4,000 hectares of land allocated to the university are not entirely usable, as 2,000 hectares of it is mountainous terrain.

Recall that at the inauguration of the access road to the Giri district in FCT on June 30, Wike alleged that the university ‘grabbed’ 11,000 hectares of land, adding that only 4,000 hectares will be allocated to the institution.

Speaking on Arise TV on Thursday, Tejuoso explained that the 11,000 hectares of land were allocated to the university by former president Ibrahim Babangida and that the development of the institution is an ongoing process.

“And he had his vision of the University of Abuja to be the flagship of universities all over the country… We had 11,000 hectares so that we could keep on developing. No university develops in a day.

“Even no state government develops in a day. If that is the case, the Honourable Minister of FCT wouldn’t have made a statement to start doing projects if they had already finished all the development. It’s a continuous exercise,” he said.

Tejuoso revealed that the university has been attracting partnerships and investments, including a cancer research centre, and that the threat to the land is hampering these efforts.

He noted that the university has memoranda of understanding (MOUs) with partners, adding that the university’s development and growth are being hindered by the uncertainty over the land.

The Pro-Chancellor suggested that the FCT Minister, Wike, could take over the mountainous part of the land and develop it, rather than taking the usable land.

“Let me first of all tell you that even the 4,000 hectares you are talking about, 2,000 hectares of it is a mountain. When you fly out of Abuja Airport, the mountain you see is in the university. So, looking at what has been proposed, we only have 2,000 hectares because we have a mountain of 2,000. Maybe Minister Wike should come and take over the mountain and develop it,” he said.

He expressed confidence that President Bola Tinubu would do the right thing in the matter, adding that the Minister of Education is also having discussions with the FCT minister over the issue.

“Everything is owned by the federal government. So if the federal government decides that it doesn’t want the University of Abuja to exist or to develop, so be it. I was appointed by the president to be the pro-chancellor, the chairman of the council, and I inherited what we have now.

“So if the federal government decides that it wants to reduce what I’m going to govern over, what can I say? But what is important is there’s no way that we can have a successful vision if they reduce what we are marketing to partners,” he said.

Meanwhile, the acting vice chancellor of the university, Prof. Lar Patricia Manko, has reiterated that the 11,000 hectares of land is a legacy asset given to the institution by the federal government.

During an interview with newsmen on Thursday, Manko, while acknowledging Wike as FCT landlord, said the university land can never be too much, and the institution has a plethora of uses for the property.

Manko, who stated that the controversy is already being handled, noted that the university has plans for the use of the expanse of land ranging from agriculture, tourism, research centres, quarters for members of staff and student hostels, among others.

The acting VC said that due to a lack of funds to finance some of the projects, the institution has entered into some memoranda of understanding for the development.

She noted that the current staff quarters of the institution are temporarily built on plots of land given to the university by the military, and there are plans to construct permanent structures at the institution’s permanent site.

The acting VC said there are many investors who are partnering with the institution in the development of the projects on the 11,000 hectares of land.

Wike Left 2,000 Hectares Of Mountain For UniAbuja – Pro-Chancellor is first published on The Whistler Newspaper