The Vice Chancellor, Olabisi Onabanjo University, OOU, Ago Iwoye, Prof. Ganiyu Olatunde, has advised universities in the country against indiscriminate award of first-class degree to their students, saying a situation where some universities would have a significant number of their graduating students bagging such is becoming worrisome.

This is just as he clarified that students deserving of such grades should not be denied.

He spoke in Ago Iwoye while briefing the press on activities lined up for the 30th convocation ceremony of the institution.

According to the VC, graduates should be able to defend the certificates and degrees held by them.

Giving a breakdown of the graduating students who are from the 2019/2020 and 2020/2021 sessions, Olatunde said 991 are in the second class upper category, 2,738 in the second class lower level, 1,925 in the third class category, 217, pass category and 135 in the unclassified category.

He added that 140 would bag postgraduate diploma, 486 master’s degree and 103 to get doctorate degree.

As part of the activities to mark the occasion, the Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, Prof. Is-haq Olanrewaju Oloyede would deliver the convocation lecture titled “Your future is in your hands”.

According to Don, the lecture is entitled: “Your Future is in your hands,” adding that a convocation play, written by Prof. Femi Osofosan, would also be staged. 

Zimbabwe’s Acting President, Constantino Chiwenga has announced that schools will open on February 7 and the curfew will now start from midnight to 5.30am.

Businesses are also encouraged to go back to working from their offices.

Restaurants and hotels offering catering services can now operate from 8am to 10pm..

Minister Murwira said over the past two weeks, the country had recorded a decline in new Covid-19 cases indicating that the fourth wave is at its tail end and the wave appears to be being brought under control.

The Nigeria Union of Teachers, NUT,  Ikot Ekpene Branch, Akwa Ibom State, has directed that public primary Schools recently shut down over the alleged unlawful detention of a teacher, Comfort Edet by the Police would re-open on Monday, January 31, 2022.

In a statement signed by the Branch Secretary, Bassey Akpanama, he said its decision to reopen the Schools followed the release of Mrs Edet before the expiration of its 48hours ultimatum to the Police command.

The union advised both teachers and pupils to be security conscious in order to forestall a recurrence of such incidence.

 “May this serve to inform all teachers in public primary schools, in particular, and the general public, at large, that a teacher in Methodist Township School, 34 Chubb Road, Ikot Ekpene, Mrs Comfort Edet, who was unlawfully held in detention by the Officers of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), Ikot Akpan Abia, Uyo has been released, the statement reads:  .

 Recalled that the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) Ikot Ekpene Branch, in a press release entitled dated 26th January, 2022 had directed all teachers/pupils in public primary schools in Ikot Ekpene LGA to embark on operation ‘sit – at – home,’ following the expiration of the 48 hours ultimatum given to Educational Stakeholders and Security Agencies until the innocent teacher is set free from police detention.

“With this development of the sudden free release of the Mrs Edit, less than 24 hours after the union announced the strike, NUT Ikot Ekpene Branch wishes to state that from Monday, 31st January 2022, all public primary schools will be opened for normal academic activities.

“While teachers/pupils are expected to be in their respective schools, they have equally advised to device proactive measures and be security conscious in their schools’ premises in order to forestall impending recurrence of such incidence.