The University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT) in Rivers State, that was shut by the management in the evening of April 11 this year, after students’ violent protest earlier in the day, will be reopening on Sunday, with first semester examinations to start the next day.
According to information yesterday from the university’s website (http://www.uniport.edu.ng/resources/calendar.html), the revised academic calendar for 2015/2016 session would be for both full-time and part-time programmes, as approved at the 422nd meeting (extra-ordinary) of the Senate of the higher institution.
UNIPORT’s Deputy Registrar, Information and Public Relations, Dr. Williams Wodi, while announcing the closure of the federal university on April 11, assured that it would be for just one month, but the promise could not be fulfilled, making the students to be at home for over two months.
The protest by UNIPORT’s students led to the death of a final year male student in the Faculty of Management Sciences, who was shot by one of the policemen who came to clear the barricades on the ever-busy East-West Road, where the students were expressing their displeasure over lack of potable water and regular electricity, among others, on campus, with many students also injured and valuable property worth millions of naira either vandalised or destroyed by the students and hoodlums, who later hijacked the protest.
The Vice-Chancellor of UNIPORT, Prof. Ndowa Lale, who hails from Eleme Local Government Area of Rivers state, was asked by the Governing Council of the institution to resign for alleged incompetence and dereliction of duties, especially for being unable to prevent the protest and death of the promising young man.
Prof. Lale, who succeeded barely a year ago, Prof. Joseph Ajienka, a Petroleum Engineer, who hails from Okrika in Rivers state, rather than resigning as directed, proceeded to the Federal High Court (FHC), Port Harcourt, where he challenged the decision of the Governing Council, with the court asking the parties to report to FHC later this month for out-of-court settlement.
The UNIPORT’s calendar indicated that all full-time students would arrive on campus on June 19, with the first semester examinations to be between June 20 and July 16 (4 weeks), while the students would proceed on break between July 18 and July 23 and the second semester would commence on July 24.
Second semester lectures will be between July 25 and October 14 (12 weeks).
UNIPORT also fixed August 17 for extra-ordinary meeting of Senate, to consider first semester (2015/2016) results, while the Students Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES) would be between July and December, 2016.
The Federal Government-owned higher institution also fixed October 10 to 15 for Students’ Union Week, involving cultural activities and professional exhibitions.
Revision is to take place from October 17 to October 21, while second semester examinations will hold between October 24 and November 12, with long vacation for full-time students to be from November 14 to December 9, 2016.
Extra-ordinary meeting of Senate to consider second semester results has been fixed for December 14.
For sandwich programme for 2015/2016 session, the fresh and returning PNCE students will arrive between July 11 and 17 and make contact with the students’ affairs, while their lectures will be from July 18 to September 16 (9 weeks), with registration to end on August 19 for all sandwich students.
September 19 to 24 will be for revision, with September 21 fixed for students’ union cultural activities/day, while election will hold on September 23.
Examinations for sandwich students will take place between September 26 and 30, while they will proceed on vacation from October 1 to July 10, 2017, with extra-ordinary meeting of Senate to consider 2015/2016 sandwich programmes’ results to take place on November 2, 2016.