Tina Amanda
A Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt has adjourned for mention, the fundamental human rights suit filed by Professor Andrew Efemini against the University of Port Harcourt; the vice Chancellor of UNIPORT Professor Ndowa Lale and eleven others.
Professor Efemini, a professor of Philosophy of Development is praying the court to interpret infraction of laws and rules of the University of Port Harcourt which was used in setting up a committee to investigate, suspend and deny him all his rights and benefits by the management of University.
Efemini was suspended by the University after he called for the sack of the Vice-Chancellor of the University, Prof Ndowa Lale for “criminally misleading the senate by not providing an approved schedule of fees in federal universities to distinguished members” in a petition to the Chancellor and Chairman, governing the board of the institution, Prof. Mvendaga Jibo.
According to the petition: “The directive is that students who are coming into the university should be charged fees not exceeding N45,000 all-inclusive. The circular warned against the collection of acceptance fees. But Prof Lale collected N30,000 as acceptance fee from each incoming student”
“Under Prof Lale’s watch, first-year students are charged approximately one hundred and twenty-eight thousand Naira (N128,000) excluding non-statutory charges at the various faculties and departments.
“Due to Prof Lale’s criminal concealment, Senate and Council have taken decisions to enforce illegal fees on unsuspecting parents and students with very damaging consequences.
“The implication of the excess charges on 1st-year students is that the Senate was misled into forcing 2nd year and 3rd-year students to repeat their classes for inability to pay their fees when the draconian Vice-Chancellor has collected such fees in their first year.
“Prof Lale must urgently be removed as investigations into how much was collected and what he did with these illegal collections are carried out.”
During the court proceeding, Counsel to all the respondents in the matter, G J Okirigwe drew the attention of the court to a motion for extension of time which was not opposed by the plaintiff’s counsel, Higher King.
Okirigwe also informed the court of his preliminary objections that have been served on the plaintiff in court which includes the jurisdiction of the court to hear the matter, the suit been status barred, and the claimant’s failure to pay the appropriate fee for his prayers.
Justice Ochoma, after listening to the parties, adjourned to 4th November, for mention.
Speaking to our reporter, Tina Amanda, Counsel to the plaintiff, HIGHER KING, said his client is praying the court to interpret some of the powers the present Vice-Chancellor Professor Lale has taken to himself, whether he has the power to set up a committee to suspend a fellow professor without due process.
Okirigwe, Counsel to the University of Port Harcourt, the Vice-Chancellor and eleven others declined to speak on the matter.
