WITHIN NIGERIA reporter conducted a report/feature story which exposed the terrible, sad, dirty and deplorable state of the 42-year-old deserted Osun State College of Health Technology situated in Imelu, Ilesa. The college is directly opposite the house of the four-time lawmaker and incumbent speaker of Osun State House of Assembly, Hon. Timothy Owoeye.
The sorry state of infrastructures, poor road network, non-accreditation of three departments, non-mobilisation of HND graduates for NYSC and how graduates of health technician leave school yearly with unvalidated results were included in the report.
The special report/feature story is now five-month-old. WITHIN NIGERIA reporter visited the college to do a careful appraisal and see if possible new changes have been recorded especially social issues that need urgent intervention have been resolved.
Apagunpote Olayimika Chocomilo reports;
WITHIN NIGERIA reporter still insists that the college has been neglected by her visitor. The 42-year-old college is still deserted and abandoned. The road network has become worse, more potholes and some parts of the roads have been eroded by erosion. You can not wear white clothes or pass through the school with motorcycles or tricycles without gradually turning into a heap of sand. The road network is very terrible. Broken chairs and tables, dirty, old lourves and presence of artificial wells in classrooms due to broken cemented floors. The facilitates of the college are still in a very sorry state.
The four deserted public toilets are surrounded by caked feaces and used tissue papers but the students no longer care as students now make use of bushes to defecate. As at the time of writing this report, there is no water supply in the college and students populace rely on water tank few metres away from the mosque.
Heaps of wastes mostly papers, nylons and plastics beside the Dental Therapy department have been cleared and burned but new heaps of wastes can been seen at the back of some departments and the health centre of the college is no different.
Inspite of the sorry state of facilities, there are new developments and WITHIN NIGERIA reporter believes that the total repair of the dying college is a work in progress. Two departments namely Dental Therapy and Health Assistant have been accredited while Department of Environmental Health still battles with their accreditation. Both ND and HND students leave school as graduates of a yet-to-be accredited course. They have not been accredited because the department do not possess minimum requirements needed.
WITHIN NIGERIA reporter reliably gathered that HND graduates of the only college of Health Technology in the state can not be mobilised for NYSC. Investigation revealed that until HND graduates of Department of Health Technology are attached to graduates of other institutions, they can not be mobilised for service. This sole alternative is a costly one.
A newly furnished dental clinic has been provided by the school authority which is an essential requirement needed for the accreditation of Dental courses. There are seven dental chairs stationed inside a small room and two air conditioners. Inside the same big building that housed the dental clinic, WITHIN NIGERIA reporter saw atleast twenty desktops recently purchased for students in another room bigger than the dental clinic.
Students of Dental Therapy and Health Assistant now attend lectures with happy face because these two courses have been accredited while students of Environmental Health are still hopeful and rely on the promises of the school management.
WITHIN NIGERIA reporter spoke with some students of the college over the sorry state of the college. Some students prefers anonymity while some students refuse to speak with WITHIN NIGERIA over fear of possible intimidation.
Speaking to WITHIN NIGERIA, the former SUG President of the college now Secretary of National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) Osun axis, Comrade Ogunsakin Oluwafemi commended the management for setting up the dental clinic, Health Assistant Laboratory and success recorded over the accreditation of the course.
While commending the management, Comrade Oluwafemi appealed to the management and sought for the intervention of the government towards the total repair and rehabilitation of the college.
The road network is very poor and some classrooms need repairs. We thank them for the dental clinic and others but they still have a lot to do, he added.
A 100 level student of Community Health (name withheld) decried the poor state of infrastructure and lamented about the terrible state of the public toilets.
I am not proud to be a student of this school. This is the worst institution I have ever been too. No water, epiletic power supply, dirty environment, shortage of staffs and broken chairs are all what I see everywhere. This is not a college, it is a piggery, a rather sad student said.
Attempts by WITHIN NIGERIA to speak with the Provost of the college, Dr. Fritz Mobolaji Olaoye were futile as he continues to reject WITHIN NIGERIA reporter calls till the time of filing this report. Nonetheless, WITHIN NIGERIA contacted the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Health, Osun state who heads the ministry that supervises the affairs of the college.
WITHIN NIGERIA reporter placed a phone call to the permanent secretary of Osun State Ministry of Health who confirmed the accreditation of some courses and told WITHIN NIGERIA reporter that they are working on ways to resolve other issues.