Ekiti varsity bans smoking, campus ‘marriage’

The Ekiti State University, Ado-Ekiti, on Monday announced the banning of smoking within the campus by both staff and students.
The university’s Vice Chancellor, Prof. Samuel Bandele, disclosed this on Monday in Ado-Ekiti at a press conference, ahead of the institution’s 21st convocation coming up on June 24.
Bandele said the ban on smoking was aimed at domesticating the state government’s law against public smoking in any part of the state.
Also banned, according to Bandele, is the practice where students of opposite sex live together, cook together and perform other roles as if they are married or those engaged in trial marriage.
He said: “As part of the measures, this administration is making efforts to build 20,000 hostel capacity that will keep female students away from their male counterparts.
“We are on the path of being ranked among the few best in the country, with the declaration of state of emergency in critical areas such as examination and records department and EKSU ventures among others.
“This institution is also making efforts to widen the scope of internally generated revenue and encourage people’s enrollment in our part-time programmes.
“There is no institution that can survive without part-time programmes and other extra academic activities, especially at a time like this.”
Bandele commended the Federal Government’s ban on the conduct of post-UTME tests and its approval that universities were free to still conduct screening for their new intakes.
According to him, such screening would enable the universities to determine candidates with intention to gain admission with fake results.
“Our university have just been given 10,000 admission quota, but the truth of the matter is that we do not have the capacity for that figure unless we screen to choose the few best,” he said.
On the coming convocation, Bandele said 18,685 candidates are to receive degrees, diplomas and post-graduate diplomas.
He said: “The breakdown showed that 3,054 are full-time students, 392 for sandwich, 10,613 for affiliate colleges and 3,937 part-time students.
“For those in the post-graduate classes, 78 are Ph.D degrees, 366 for masters, 127 for professional masters and 118 are for post-graduate diploma.
“In all, 24 students are to bag First Class honours degree.
“Some Nigerians, including Governor Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa, will be conferred with honorary Doctorate Degrees at the convocation.”