The systematic admission failure of the University of Calabar (UNICAL) has been exposed by the institution’s dentistry students, whose fate hangs in the balance, as they protested in demand of urgent attention from the government authorities.
A group of students from the Faculty of Dentistry at UNICAL were seen staging a peaceful protest on Wednesday, demanding urgent induction and facility upgrades, as they marched to the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Education, seeking intervention.
According to some of the protesting students, who spoke with journalists, the bone of contention is the quota issue, which has denied the graduating dental students induction alongside their Medicine and Surgery counterparts.
“The induction is going to be on Monday, and we have been denied the induction. Instead, they have been telling us that the graduate quota is 10,” one of the students said.
The protest, however, brought to light the systemic failures plaguing the department, including inadequate facilities and lecturer shortages. “Even in our Year 5, they seized our scripts. We wrote professional examinations twice because the lecturers refused to come.
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“After all our efforts and dialogue, they still say we must wait for MCDN to visit and revalidate, but when we asked for a date, there’s no response,” the student further revealed.
Many other students emphasised that they worry that they are stuck, some having nine to 11 years on campus without graduation.
“We don’t want to be transferred to another university, we want to graduate,” the student was seen shouting.
Egbe Ayuk, the Cross River commissioner of health, in his response, said the information shared was not officially communicated to the ministry.
“We will look into the matter. The government of this state is not happy with how our students are being treated. That’s why there’s an inspiration to create our state-owned medical school,” he said.
The commissioner, in addition, said, “The governor, who is currently away, is not pleased with the situation. We’ll work closely with the university to solve the issue.
“I assure you, don’t be anxious. For those awaiting induction, please be patient so we can address this properly, not just for you but for the students coming after you.”
Anthony Owan-Enoh, the secretary general to the governor, who addressed the students at the government house, said, “At the commission, we have the mandate to look into your matter. But while we do that, please write us a formal complaint so we can understand the full details.”
Emmanuel Ironbar, the secretary to the state government, promised to look into the matter.
“The governor has asked me to hear your complaints. Two or three of you will follow me to my office to put it down in writing. We will look into it with the university and call you back tomorrow to know how to address the issue,” he said.
Similarly, Florence Obi, the vice-chancellor at UNICAL, promised to resolve the crisis before leaving office, denying reports that the dentistry programme had lost its accreditation.
