Facilities at the Osun State of College of Education, Ilesa, are in a deplorable state. Aside some projects sponsored by the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND), and the only public toilet renovated by the Students’ Union but now in a-not-too-pleasant state, there is little or no facility worthy of note in the 41-year-old institution.
The ruins of an abandoned college hall can be seen a few metres away. At present, there is no functional public toilet in the school. Though there are clusters of toilets attached to staff offices, and others attached to TETFUND buildings, students have to help themselves in nearby bushes anytime they are pressed.
CAMPUSLIFE reporter, who visited the school, saw two deserted public toilets. One is located close to the School of Languages, a stone throw to the Central Mosque. The other is by the School of Education, very close to the entrance of the main campus. Apparently, the toilets have suffered neglect, with fresh and caked human faeces and toilet papers scrambling for space within their surroundings.
There are only four boreholes channelled to offices of administrative buildings and that of senior members of the staff alone. No halls of residence for students and no guarantee of lives and property, CAMPUSLIFE gathered.
Yet students are forced to learn under this despicable situation characterised by creaky, dangerous and run-down facilities. Aside some areas obviously overgrown with bush, there are tell-tale signs of collapse in some structures. Walls are crying for a new coat of paints.
“Thanks to TETFUND, this school would have completely vanished due to a dearth of facilities,” said a rather sad Samuel Awowolu, an alumnus of the institution.
Osun State College of Education, Ilesa, was established in 1978. Its mandate, like others of its kind, is to provide teacher education at the basic level. The school runs three academic programmes: NCE, a franchised regular and degree programmes by the University of Ibadan, and another franchise, a sandwich programme by the Lagos State University (LASU).
NCE students pay N20,000 as tuition. The UI franchise (regular) pay N50,000. However, sundry fees (administrative and ICT fees), among others, were recently introduced by the management.
Students also complained bitterly about the introduction of N12,000 as teaching practice (TP) fees. Over the years, TP has been free until when it was introduced by the management headed by the Provost, Prof. Kolawole Labayo Kazeem.
When added together, fresh NCE students now pay N67,000 as school fees; NCE students between 200-300 levels part with N47,000, fresh students of UI must cough out between N76,000 to N133,800 as school fees, while sandwich students pay N66,000 as fees.
However, the management justified its action, saying what students called a raise in tuition fees was just an introduction of administrative charges. Such charges, it argued, has helped in the speedy payment of staff salaries as well as meeting some running cost of the institution.
