The management of The Polytechnic, Ibadan has postponed its first-semester examination scheduled for January 9 indefinitely.
The development comes after students of the institution held a protest in the early hours of Monday.
According to NAN, the protest followed the increase in hostel refusal fee from N5,000 to N15,000 and the use of a consultant to run the affairs of the school.
Some of the aggrieved students were said to have barricaded the school gate and other roads connecting to the institution before proceeding to the state government secretariat to block all access roads.
In a statement by Modupe Fawale, its registrar, the institution described the protest as “ill-motivated and politically inclined”.
It also lamented the hardship the protest caused the staff of the institution and the general public.
“The students union body has no formal complaint before the management concerning the examination slated to commence on Monday, January 9, and therefore, their protest to the state secretariat is questionable,” the statement reads.
”The management further noted that the students’ union breached the rule of decency by locking all the gates that lead to the institution and thereby causing unwarranted hardship to their colleagues.
”It is on record that The Polytechnic, Ibadan students pay one of the lowest tuition fees among their contemporaries in the Southwest.
“Payment of tuition has been made flexible and convenient as students pay 60 per cent of the tuition fee during the first semester and pay the remaining 40 per cent during the second semester.
“The institution has not increased tuition in the last couple of years. Protesting on a day that they should be sober and commence their examination which is a major academic activity leading to the award of their diploma is ill-advised, and politically motivated.
“It is therefore of no reasonable value to the students and indeed to the development of education.”
The institution initially suspended its students’ union government following the protest.
But in a follow-up statement, Fawale said the suspension of the union and its executives has been reversed.
The registrar said the suspension was lifted due to interventions from relevant stakeholders.
Fawale added that a new date for the commencement of the examination will be announced to the students through appropriate channels.
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