Lack of leadership training, Bane of Nigeria’s development - V C

Inadequate leadership training is one of the challenges affecting development in Nigeria, the Vice-Chancellor of Ekiti State University, Prof. Patrick Oladipo Aina has said. He made the observation during a workshop for Students Union leaders of the institution held at the Odua hall of the University.

Represented by the Deputy-Vice-Chancellor (Academic), Prof. Olugbenga Aribisala, the Vice-Chancellor expressed dismay over the absence of training and retraining programmes in several sectors of the nation.

He said that the need for workshops concerning Students’ Unionism in Nigerian tertiary institutions could not be over-emphasized as there was the need to change the orientation of students from the old fashion of ‘Aluta Continua’ to something progressive in order to stop the unnecessary demonstrations in Nigerian Universities.

“Rampaging or violent demonstrations are archaic, students should embrace peaceful demonstrations and dialogue to resolve issues”, the Vice-Chancellor asserted.

During the workshop, the Dean of the School of Post-Graduate Studies, Prof. Eddy Olanipekun admonished the students to change with time as violent demonstrations are no longer in vogue. In his address centred on Students’ Unionism in the 21st Century, he advised students to always adopt productive dialogue rather than delving into riotous protests which should not be a hallmark of a world-class institution such as Ekiti State University.

Prof. Olanipekun however noted that students could only embark on protests when other avenues of dialogue have been exhausted.