The acting Vice Chancellor of Ignatius Ajuru University of Education Port Harcourt (IAUE), Prof Okechuku Onuchuku, has explained that out of the 1500 vacancies available for employment in the institution, 1100 were earmarked for academic positions, and 400 were for non-teaching positions.
This explanation comes against the backdrop of a protest by some youths and women of Rumuolumeni Community at the school’s main entrance on Monday, alleging marginalization of in the employment exercise carried out at the institution.
Onuchuku, while exchanging views with journalists, said, if the slots were distributed according to local government areas in the state, each LGA would have had 47 slots for teaching and 17 for non-teaching positions.
He said this was not the case since the exercise was done on merit and in compliance with employment law.
Onuchuku pointed out that from the records of the employment exercise, Rumuolumeni alone, which is one ward in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area, got 15 slots in the academic category and 30 persons in non-teaching category making a total of 45 persons.
The professor of Economics further said that IAUE is a public educational institution, owned by the Rivers State Government, and not by a private individual, thus the need to follow and obey all available rules and regulations governing it.
He noted that a recruitment of such nature in an academic institution must be competitive in nature, particularly for the teaching category and other senior specialized personnel such as medical doctors, accountants, laboratory scientists, engineers, among others.
The vice chancellor further expressed appreciation for the efforts of stakeholders and others who have continued to support and promote the image of the institution.
Meanwhile, our reporter gathered that the Rumuolumeni monarch, HRH. Eze Engr Chukwuemeka Victor Woji Okocha Olumeni XII
and his council of chiefs might not be in the know of the protest, as a source said the council ‘did not send the group to protest’.
Other sources suggest that the protest might have been instigated by “some influential members of the community whose candidates were not selected due to their inability to score the required grades during the recruitment process.”
