…Chemical disrupts PCM panel session with committee
The Students Electoral Commitee screening held on Tuesday by the SUELECO screening committee led by the chairman, Adedeji Monsuru, has been observed to be vague and not transparent.
During yesterday’s screening, Press Club Moshood Abiola Polytechnic, PCM observed that some of the candidates screened by the committee were unqualified candidates, who didn’t meet up with the requirements, without questioning or giving genuine reasons.
According to the SUG constitution, article XIV, subsection 2 and 3, which speaks extensively on the committee and the candidates to be screened, every member being screened must be recognized by his/her Head of Department, HOD before being qualified.
However, the 5-man screening committee violated this law and screened candidates who were not recognized by their departments.
One of the candidates, Emmanuel Michael, a student of Mass Communication, was one of the students who got screened yesterday without being acknowledged by his HOD.
As of the time of getting our evidence, Tuesday, 12 noon, the candidate was unqualified to be screened by the committee.
However, sources have hinted PCM that, after questions by journalists with the club, Michael approached a lecturer in his department, probably after being hinted by members of the committee, to help him with the signature, hours after the screening was held.
In the same vein, candidates were seen submitting the form obtained from the committee, 48hrs after the submission deadline given by the committee.
Students, stakeholders have however lost trust in the screening process of the SUELECO committee.
Chemical disrupts PCM panel session with committee
While trying to engage the SUELECO screening committee to question them on what has been observed, the sitting Student Union Government president, Prosper Oladele, popularly known as Chemical disrupted the session.
Chemical was said to be part of the screening observer, giving him privilege to move in and out of the screening process.
While speaking with the committee, they revealed that 15 candidates were screened, adding that the process was seamless and stress free.
The committee also described the candidates as competent, saying they all met the requirements. The committee Public Relations Officer, Nosiru Muiz said all that was needed from the candidates is their GP and to confirm their member of the institution. “We need their GP to know if they are bonafide students of the institution,” he added.
He added that the only challenge they had was that most of them came late.
However, when asked about inappropriate actions observed including late submission and missing HOD signature on candidate’s form, Muiz said “we later extended the deadline and we made a release to that effect.”
Findings from PCM showed that the last release from the committee was on Monday, about the announcement of the submission of the form and screening schedule.
Also, responding to the HOD missing signature, all committee members threw shades at PCM without giving a response to whether it was true or not. However, findings have shown we have the fact.
Few minutes to the shades being thrown, Chemical stood up and asked the committee to leave the session.
In his words, “don’t you have anything else to do,” and immediately, all the committee members stood up and walked away from the session.
Speaking with one of the candidates, Ogundoye Matthew, who submitted his form today, he said he has been in the hospital, giving reasons for his late submission.
Matthew, who’s an outgone HND 2 Urban And Regional Planning student said, ” the screening process is okay, everything went well. I’ve collected my form since Sunday, and I submitted my form this morning. I was at the hospital yesterday because I wasn’t feeling well, which was why I submitted it today, because yesterday was the deadline.”
Speaking with other candidates, they expressed satisfactory with the screening, saying the screening process was simple.
Muttalib Olawale, a candidate and outgone student of Mass Communication said, “I came here for the SUELECO screening this morning, and everything actually went well. Kudos to the panelists who screened everyone. I don’t know if they are done, but I believe they did their job in ensuring that we have the right people in the cabinet for the new SUG electoral process.
“I didn’t feel attacked because, in a way, I was given a taste of my own medicine. If I were to screen someone, I would do so diligently without bias or personal emotions. I know nobody, and nobody knows me, so we had a formal screening.”
Also, Jegede Jonathan from the department of Microbiology said, “from what I saw in there,I think they are being fair enough,they asked questions and I answered them as a normal person would ask questions and answer and I don’t think there is any form of not being fair.”
He also explained that getting his HOD’s signature was quite stressful “because personally I am done with school so I had to fly down to come and do certain things, it was quite stressful but within couple of minutes I was done and it was worth it.”
They therefore asked the committee to release the results in earnest so they can get prepared for the next stage.