By Peter Onyekachukwu 
By Peter Onyekachukwu
The Acting Vice Chancellor of Adeyemi Federal University of Education (AFUED), Ondo State, Professor Samuel Akintunde, has raised the alarm over the institution’s surging energy bills, revealing that the university spends at least N26 million monthly on electricity, excluding diesel costs, amid dwindling funds.
Akintunde disclosed this while addressing journalists in Ondo as part of activities marking the university’s 61st Foundation Day and 35th Convocation Ceremony. He said the electricity expenditure was becoming unsustainable for the institution, which continues to grapple with financial pressure and poor infrastructure.
“We pay about N26 million for electricity every month. This is not even including what we spend on diesel. We consume 5,000 litres of diesel every two weeks just to keep our generators running. Funding remains a major challenge,” the VC stated.
He expressed concern that the electricity burden, coupled with low student enrolment and increasing operational costs, was hampering the institution’s ability to meet its core academic and developmental obligations.
Despite the challenges, Prof. Akintunde maintained that AFUED has continued to lead in the training of professional teachers, research output, and community engagement, while assuring that the school was exploring alternative sources of power to ease the burden.
Speaking on the upcoming convocation, he revealed that the university will be graduating six academic sets spanning from the 2017/2018 session to date. A total of 18,825 students will be convocated, comprising 6,269 from the NCE programme, 11,501 from the degree programme, and 1,055 part-time graduates.
“The university is now positioned to hold its convocation annually going forward,” he added.
He also disclosed that this year’s convocation lecture titled, “The Advent of Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Nigeria’s Tertiary Education,” would be delivered by renowned historian and scholar, Prof. Toyin Falola of the University of Texas, Austin, USA.
Distinguished Nigerians including the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, an alumna of the university, and Oba (Dr) Victor Kiladejo, the Osemawe and paramount ruler of Ondo Kingdom, will be honoured with Honorary Doctorate Degrees at the ceremony.
In a boost for student support, Akintunde noted that 995 students of the institution are among the beneficiaries of the federal government’s National Education Loan Fund (NELFUND).
“So far, 995 students have applied and are expecting a total of N68,316,200. This is separate from the monthly stipend of N20,000 per student,” he said.
Prof. Akintunde called on government and private sector stakeholders to assist in funding teacher education and sustaining the institution’s growth.