Academic Excellence and Student Welfare Is our Precedence - SUG PRESIDENT

Academic Excellence and Student Welfare Is our Precedence  - SUG PRESIDENT

Adebayo Nurudeen

The SUG president, Comrade Surakat Muftaudeen, and his cabinet members were inaugurated  on the 25th of January 2023.

Since its inauguration, the student union body has organized various programmes both in and out of the school premises.

Meet with the president, as he talks about direct entry and his agenda for the students.

Tell us about yourself  and where you are from.

My name is Surakat Muftaudeen, I am from Lagos State, Epe division, ibeju lekki. I am from the department of Computer Science, School Of Technology.

As the student Union president, what led to your aspiration? or did you just wake up and decide you want to become the president?

Leaders are not born, I have always had the desire to lead. I was part of the team that led indigene verification, I ensured swift response from the staff of the school involved in the process.  I was performing the role of the class governor at the government technical college.

I  understood the nature of operations in the academic setting, I call lecturers when needed, and always of the postulation of student welfare.

Since my OND days, I have always been the Head of the class, I discovered that communication from the top management to the student is so narrow, with no connection between the students and the management which prompt me to go around the school even to other campuses in isolo, Surulere just to get all of the Hoc's numbers and creating a platform.

 The Previous Dean of Students’ Affairs  Engr. Bankole was added to the platform including every official from the three arms of the Student Union.

Moving forward, General Agric Studies was introduced for the ND1, HND1 student, due to my activeness in student welfare, I became the Head of the farm(HOF).with the support of the school management, SUG, and other departments in the school, movement was pushed and issues were amicably solved using dialogue. 

what prompted me to become the president is that I believe from childhood that there's is nothing I want that I don't get. I could approach anyone due to the image I have already created.

 I recently went through the law that binds the transmutation of the polytechnic to the university. Reading the law, I felt there is a need for someone to step in to ensure peaceful co-existence between the polytechnic and university students.

Subsisting as the  SUG president, what agenda do you have for the students? Is there anything the administration is aiming at?

This question is logical, the student Union rallies around two agenda, firstly is the student academics which mean students should receive lectures in a conducive environment and also receive lecture at the right time, secondly  Welfarism of the students.

There are some departments such as the  Guardian and Counselling unit in charge of student welfare, the psychology unit, the medical department, security unit, and the general overseer is the directorate of students affairs who is the father to everyone, also the entire executive of the union is always available to cater for everyone.

There is speculation on the campus that the SUG belongs to a certain political group, how do you clarify that, also several programs have been conducted the AGT, the APC rally and the just concluded let's dialogue. So tell us if the SUG body involves itself with these political bodies.

The just concluded let's dialogue is a symposium program that wasn't attached to any political group. it was for three purposes namely: Symposium, Orientation and to acknowledge some committee. Student Union tries its best to see that all faculty are well represented. 

The hall is open for anyone as far as students' welfarism is concerned as well as their social lives.

Since the school became a university, which plans have been made?

There hasn't been any plan since the transmutation of the school to a university. The union is not aware of any plan.

How much is generated annually from the union?

Talking about the union budget it is very plausible, all the union executives are up doing, and also from the feedback gotten from the just concluded programs,  it was successful.

Hosting such a program, cost a fortune, and we financed the event through loans that the school has promised to pay back. 

So therefore no amount of budget can be decided because a lot of programs are still coming.

Conclusively, on the same budget how much was generated from the student levy?

In the current union, there's no money because we're still pleading with the management to go digital in the collection of the association’s levy. the online collection ensures transparency so therefore the bill should be included on the school portal and all payments should be made online so that lots to be catered for and executed.

Now let's talk about your personal experiences, what do you want from the school?

 The first primary objective as students are our academic results and lecture time should not be delayed. If after exams, there's a delay in the release of results, it implies the academic standard isn't there. 

Also, we need Time and perfect academic sessions .and there should be a  straight line of communication between the union and the school management.

Lastly, how do you ensure the correlation between LASPOTECH and Lasustech students?

Any program student Union hold is for the student as far as studentship is concerned either Laspotech or Lasustech students.

There shouldn't be any Orientation that university students should not mingle with the polytechnic student and any lecturer giving out such orientation he/ she needs to be penalized because such orientation could cause barriers that later lead to hatred.

Details of direct entry need to be released as soon as possible and also an official press statement by the school.

Has the school generally approved direct entry?

Yes, the commissioner of information and the Vice Chancellor of Academics stated in their speech during the let's dialogue program that at the end of the session direct entry into the school will be available,  but it needs to be official so students can know when to obtain the form.