The Rector of Kogi State Polytechnic, Lokoja, Prof. Salihu Sanusi Avidime, has commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for strengthening tertiary education in Nigeria through the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), describing the administration’s interventions as sustained and transformative.
Avidime made the commendation on Friday when the newly appointed TETFund Board of Trustees member representing the North Central Zone, Dr. Abdulrahman Hassan Ocholi, paid his maiden official visit to the institution.
Ocholi was accompanied by professionals from the education and technical sectors during the visit.
Welcoming the delegation, the Rector described Ocholi’s appointment as a demonstration of President Tinubu’s confidence in young and capable leaders. He also commended the President and Kogi State Governor, Ahmed Usman Ododo, for supporting and promoting emerging talents.
Avidime congratulated Ocholi on his appointment and wished him a successful and productive tenure.
According to him, the progress recorded in Nigeria’s tertiary education sector in recent years would have been difficult without the consistent interventions of TETFund, which he attributed to the Federal Government’s commitment to improving education.
He assured the administration of the Polytechnic’s continued support for policies aimed at advancing the education sector.
The Rector, however, appealed to TETFund to give the Polytechnic greater consideration in its intervention programmes, particularly in the areas of infrastructure, completion of abandoned projects and modernisation of teaching and learning facilities.
He assured the delegation that any intervention secured by the institution would be judiciously and responsibly utilised.
Avidime also expressed optimism that Ocholi’s appointment would usher in a stronger and more productive relationship between TETFund and Kogi State Polytechnic.
Responding, Ocholi thanked the Polytechnic management for the warm reception, noting that Avidime was the first head of an institution in the state to visit him following the announcement of his appointment.
He commended President Tinubu for his support for TETFund and praised Governor Ododo for identifying and supporting competent administrators, including the Rector of Kogi State Polytechnic.
Ocholi also acknowledged the leadership of the TETFund Executive Secretary, Arc. Sunday Sylva Togo Echono, for his efforts in advancing the agency’s mandate.
He explained that his visit to the Polytechnic was guided by four major objectives: to familiarise himself with the institution, assess challenges affecting priority projects, identify projects that had exceeded their completion timelines and inspect projects that were ready for commissioning.
According to him, the professionals accompanying him were specifically on the delegation to assess distressed projects and explore ways of accelerating their completion.
Ocholi pledged continued collaboration with the Polytechnic, expressing his commitment to contributing to the advancement of education in Kogi State.
Also speaking, the Polytechnic’s Director of Works and Services, Engr. Siyaka Michael Onumoh, described Ocholi’s visit as a positive development that could help address some of the institution’s infrastructural challenges.
In a separate development, the newly appointed Rector of the Nigeria-Korea Friendship Institute, Dr. Onumoh Ahmed Yahaya, appealed for institutional support, citing the increasing number of Nigerian students studying in South Korea as evidence of the importance of strengthening educational partnerships between both countries.
In response, Ocholi advised him to formally submit the request in writing for consideration by the TETFund Board.
