*We’ll make you self-sufficient – Rector assures 8,743 matriculated students, warns against wanton behavior*

Congratulating the newly 8,743 matriculated students of the Federal Polytechnic, Ilaro, the Rector, Dr Mukail Akinde FCA, FCIT has assured them of ensuring that all the necessary skills that would make them self-sufficient would be duly imparted in them before their graduation from “the most sought-after citadel of higher learning in Nigeria.

“We are committed to ensuring that all the necessary skills that would make you a total and self-sufficient student are imparted in you before graduation.

Federal Polytechnic Ilaro“As the registration exercise is winding down, it is hoped that no less than 8,743 of you have been registered into our ND, HND and ODFel programmes”.

The Rector expressed appreciation for the interest shown by the parents and guardians of the students, adding that the confidence reposed in the School would continue to serve as a motivation to improve its service delivery.

“Let me also express my profound appreciation to all parents and guardians who have played significant roles in ensuring that their wards and children consider us their first choice. The confidence you have reposed in us for our moral and academic excellence and rating in the knowledge economy is most appreciated and would continue to motivate us to improve on our service delivery and consolidate on the endearing core values that underpin our brand, which has always positioned us as the most sought-after Polytechnic in Nigeria”.

Dr Akinde intimated the new students about the dos and don’ts of the School, urging them to always go through the institutional channel for reporting grievances instead of taking the law into their own hands.

“You are expected to be law-abiding, show reverence for constituted authority, and exhibit a high sense of discipline in your pursuit of academic success. You should not, in any way, be involved in any activity that will portray the institution in a bad light. The Polytechnic will not award its certificate to students found wanting in character, even when competent in learning. The rules governing discipline in the Polytechnic are well captured in the Student Handbook, which all of you are expected to be in possession of. The Federal Polytechnic Ilaro exhibits zero tolerance for students’ indiscipline of any kind. The following are some of the acts that are deemed as gross indiscipline, which you are enjoined to avoid: cultism, fellowship or joining unregistered association, clubs, fraudulent activities, making money by deceits, electronic and physical impersonation, phishing, scamming of all kinds, cheating during examinations; stealing, drug abuse of any type, sexual immorality, rudeness, battery, driving of Polytechnic’s vehicles, and disobedience to lawful instructions; walking on lawns; littering of the Campus; writing graffiti on walkways and indiscriminate posting of posters; and indecent dressings in the forms of sagging, revealing clothes, coloured hair, body hugs, face cap and T-shirt with strange and vulgar inscriptions. While on campus, grievances are inevitable. However, the right thing for aggrieved students to do is to go through the institutional channel for reporting grievances instead of taking the law into their own hands”.

The Rector educated the students and teeming parents on some innovative of the Federal Polytechnic Ilaro.

“Our school boasts of being the first Polytechnic in Nigeria to have established a Driving School, which is certified and approved by the Federal Road Safety Corps and the Vehicle Inspectorate Office. The driving school offers an opportunity for those of you whose 6courses require proficiency in driving to take driving lessons. Moreover, the Polytechnic has established an Innovation Centre in order to nurture the capacity of students with respect to the knowledge and skills of programming, drone manufacturing and flying, and equipment manufacturing requisite for eliminating human labour-intensive repetitive tasks, essentially preparing students for the disruptive demands of the future of work and the unfolding fourth and fifth industrial revolutions. It will interest you to note that the centre, with students of Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, and Computer Science, recently produced biometric devices for attendance at classrooms and examinations and electric tricycles with a full complement of batteries, solar systems, front and reverse gear systems. The internal production of Biometric device is thoughtful and novel. This is in line with global best practices. It is in a bid to accurately capture data for planning and improve students’ performances and staff’s commitment to duty. We have started capturing biometric information of the new students, management staff, and Identity cards (for old and new students) are being produced internally. Similarly, the preparation and production of staff identity cards are ongoing. Also, it is in the time table to capture biometric information about the teaching and non-teaching staff of the Polytechnic. The biometric device will be deployed in stages during the second semester 2023/2024 academic session. Similarly, the processes are ongoing to produce numbers of electronic tricycles for transportation of visitors, students, and staff on campus. Similarly, lecture timetable, examination timetable and seating arrangements are now being automated in line with the Polytechnic’s smart institution’s policy. Students will get electronic text messages with the examination halls and seat numbers early in the morning or afternoon of every examination. We will soon perfect everything relating to the use of technology to monitor students’ attendants in classrooms, movement in and out of the Library, Directorate of Student Affairs, medical, hostel, and other areas on and off campus”.