The Ebonyi State Government is to within the next one year collapse the multi-campus structure of the state university, Abakaliki, into a single campus university.

Governor David Nweze Umahi disclosed this in Abakaliki while inaugurating a committee on higher education headed by a former Deputy Governor of the state, Prof. Chigozie Ogbu.

The governor directed the Commissioner for Education and his Senior Special Assistant on Higher Education to stop further development of the Presco, CAS and Onueke campuses.

He ordered that all efforts should be directed towards the development of the permanent site at Ezzangbo since his administration would soon handover the Presco campus to its original owners.

Umahi explained that the Committee on Higher Education had become necessary to evolve means of sustaining the university and the state College of Education in Ikwo, in view of the dwindling economic situation in the country.

He said: “If we all show understanding of the situation we find ourselves, we would be able to find solution to it. We are not probing the university or college of education, but we want to put our experiences and knowledge together and find the best way that we can suggest to government and the university so that we can remain afloat.”

Governor Umahi charged the committee to determine the staff strength of the both institutions; come up with measures to prevent over employment or underemployment; ascertain the qualifications of the members of staff; know the student ratio of various academic programmes in line with the National Universities Council and the National Council on Colleges of Education regulations, etc.

Umahi also sworn-in a technical Committee on Market Development headed by Dave Nwachukwu and the Ebonyi State/Federal Government Joint Revenue Committee headed by Mr. Ugorji Ama Oti.

He stated that the relocation of traders from the Abakpa Main Market to the International Market would commence by the middle of April this year.

Governor Umahi urged the committee to come up with practical ways of completing the market and allocating stalls to intending traders.

He noted with dismay that work on the market was yet to attain 40 per cent completion, while the contractors were demanding over N9bn for its completion.

•Photo shows Governor Umahi.

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