FG CHANGES NAME OF NEW EBONYI VERSITY AS THEY SIGN TAKEOVER AGREE AGREEMENT

 New Ebonyi Varsity Changes Name As FG, State Sign Takeover Agreement

By Samson Nwafor 

The David Nweze Umahi University of Medical Sciences, a state-of-the-art newly established university by Governor David Umahi’s administration has been renamed as David Umahi Federal University of Health Sciences.

The Vice Chancellor of the University, Professor Jesse Uneke, who disclosed this, at a press conference on Wednesday, said the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the takeover of the University had been signed by the Federal Government and the State government on September 7, 2022, adding that a bill establishing the University had already been forwarded to the National Assembly.

According to the Vice Chancellor, the new name of the University located at Uburu, Ohaozara Local Government of Ebonyi State will be reflected on the JAMB portal after this year’s admission exercise.

“You are aware of the policy of the federal government to establish six universities of health sciences in the six geopolitical zones and an additional one in Abuja. So, we are fortunate that this university was made available to the federal government to serve as the Federal University of Health Sciences representing the South East.

“We are happy, having it here in Ebonyi State. The others are starting from scratch. This is the only one that has taken off fully. We are already rounding off our first session and very soon, we will be rounding off our second-semester exams for the session, which started the 2021/2022 academic session.

“So, we are happy the university is already well established and the federal government has takeover. It’s not like they are trying to build the university from the scratch. And that’s a very good thing for us, not just in Ebonyi State but entire South-Eastern Nigeria”, he explained.

Mr Uneke further added: “The other thing I want to say about the takeover is that it has translated into some form of benefits to our population, not just in South-East but in the entire country, especially those who would want their children to be trained here.”

He disclosed that following the takeover of the University by the Federal Government, the school fees have been reduced drastically.

“What we are looking at, is that we want as many people to be able to afford the university; and now it has been taken over by the federal government, the federal government takes over our salaries, capital project funding, why should we keep the tuition fees so high?

“Though, I can tell you that managing the facilities in this university is not a joke. But we are trying to make the university affordable because if you look at the fees and you want to be very considerate, you cannot compare it with what is happening in other Universities,” he said

“Of course, these fees also cover accommodation, utility, developmental fees, and other ones like examination, medical, departmental, laboratory fees and all the fees you can think of, are accommodated within that fee. The only thing is that there is no feeding. Every student should be able to take care of his/her feeding.”

“We have one of the best students’ hostels in the country. Each room has an inbuilt toilet and bathroom. You can hardly get that in any university in Nigeria and we have maximum security, a steady water supply and 24-hour power supply.

“Our hostels are five minutes’ walk to the administrative block which also houses the lecture halls. So, when a student comes into this school, such a person has no problem with transportation, everything you need as a student as far as a conducive environment is concerned, you have within this place.

“There are other facilities we have that are almost getting ready. We have the games arena that has two large football fields, and two Olympic-seize swimming pools and we have other games that are also made available such as snooker, long tennis, volleyball, etc, and there is even a cinema there. We are putting final touches on that and in the next few weeks, that place will be ready for students to start making use of,” the Vice Chancellor explained.

He also disclosed that the university had commenced its admission exercise for the 2022/2023 academic year.

“Let me also say that we have started the 2022/2023 admission exercise and we have invited students who scored 140 and above in JAMB to apply. The admission is open to all students who have passed through JAMB and scored a minimum of 140 and of course have the requisite WAEC and NECO O’ level results, depending on the course they applied for.

“Any student who didn’t choose the school as the first choice is free to go to the JAMB portal and change whichever university the person earlier applied to ours. In the JAMB portal, what you will see is David Nweze Umahi University of Medical Sciences.

“As I said, the transition just started, but after this year’s admission, the new name of the University will now reflect in the JAMB portal. So, it is important for the students and their parents to know this.”

Giving further details on the admission exercise, Professor Uneke, said: “We are also admitting students on transfer. For any student who wishes to transfer from his/her current university of study to our university, the forms and other guidelines are there on our university’s website. Provided you have completed one session in your current university of study, you are free to transfer to our university.

“We also have a pre-degree programme, where people can come, go through the programme like a foundational programme and then be admitted into the first year. We also have the IJMB programme, which is one people can do for one year and after that, they will get into the two hundred level without JAMB.

“So, we are trying as much as possible to give parents opportunities for their children to be able to come into the university, by using whichever option that they think is suitable for them. So, all the other information you need can be found on our website www.kdums.edu.ng,” he concluded.