•••PAP ASSURES THAT EXCLUDED STUDENTS WILL WRITE MISSED PAPER
The Interim Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, Maj Gen Barry Ndiomu (retd) on Thursday intervened in the disruption of the examination of students under the Presidential Amnesty Programme by the authorities of Base University, Abuja.
Base University, Abuja, had thrown out about 185 Amnesty students writing the first semester examination in the institution claiming that the Presidential Amnesty Office has not paid their school fees for the term.
An unnamed lecturer of the institution had marched out the bewildered students who had been thoroughly screened and cleared to write the Digital Entrepreneurship Gen 201 out of the institution’s multipurpose hall.
No effort was made by the institution to put the Amnesty Office nor the parents of the students on notice before they were sent out of the examination hall.
Prior to the action of the institution’s authorities, the Interim Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Office, Ndiomu, had written to the institution to notify it of a delay in the payment of the outstanding fees.
The letter dated November 8, 2022 and addressed to the Registrar of the institution, Dr Mani Ibrahim Ahmad was titled “Notification in the Delay In the Payment of Tuition Fees for PAP-Sponsored Students for the 2022/2023 Academic Session.”
Ndiomu explained in the letter that the delay in the payment of the 2022/2023 fees was due to financial commitments and budgetary constraints.
He promised the institutions authoritative that the outstanding fees would be paid on or before the end of the first quarter of 2023.
Gen Ndiomu’s letter reads in full,
“Dear Dr. Ahmad,
“NOTIFICATION OF DELAY IN THE PAYMENT OF TUITION FEES FOR PAP-SPONSORED STUDENTS FOR THE 2022/2023 ACADEMIC SESSION
1. Have been briefed about the corporate relationship and strategic partnership between Baze University and the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP), in providing qualitative formal Education opportunities to beneficiaries.
2. If you recall, tuition fees for students deployed in February 2022 have been paid. However, due to the current financial commitments of my Office as well as budgetary constraints, I write to notify you that there will be a delay in the payment of tuition fees for the students who are in training at your University for the 2022/2023 academic session.
3. I can assure you that on or before the end of the first quarter of 2023, based on scheduled release of funds by the Federal Government, the PAP Office would have fully met its outstanding finanical responsibilities to your University.
4. Please accept the assurances of my esteemed regards.”
However, the appeal and explanation contained in letter to the institution’s registrar was ignored as the school deployed its official to send out the affected students from the examination on Thursday without prior notice.
The students who obviously were not privy to the content of this letter and the discussions between the PAP and Base University over unpaid fees were only shocked to be chased out of the examination hall while their mates continued with the paper.
However, amidst the agitation among the students, Gen Ndiomu deployed a delegation led by the Head of Reintegration of the Amnesty Office, Mr Wilfred Musa, to the school to address the issue.
The Musa team met with the students and assured them that their fees would he paid and the unfortunate incident would not be allowed to repeat itself anymore.
He also told the distraught students that the school would organize another examination for them.
“Under the direction of the Interim Administrator, All amnesty students who missed their exams were addressed by the Head of Reintegration – Mr. Wilfred Musa ,in the office of the deputy Vice chancellor.
“He termed this experience as ‘regrettable’ and ‘unfortunate’ and that, that is not the intention of the PAP. He then assured us that this is a situation that the office will address so that it does not repeat itself again.
“He also noted that notable steps are being taken to ensure that the school clears all students affected to write their upcoming exams. He asked us to keep our focus and avoid distractions to our main resolve to succeed academically.
“He afterwards gave us his word and said that all students who had missed their exam earlier scheduled for this morning, would be given an opportunity to write it.
“He then directed us to meet with our relationship manager and forward all issues we have with the exam for a Frontline assessment. The meeting was thereafter brought to an end.” The source said
