The
University of Lagos (UNILAG) on Tuesday said it had changed the facility
managers maintaining its halls of residence for effective maintenance.
The change follows protest by students about the menace of
bed bugs in UNILAG hostels last October.
The Deputy Dean of the Students’ Affairs of the institution,
Dr Karo Ogbinaka, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the university
management was taking steps to improve the welfare of students by
rehabilitating the hostels.
“Because we want to get the best for our students, the
facilities in place now are a lot better. It is in the light of this that we
have decided to change the contractors we are using as facility maintenance
managers.
“We have also changed all the mattresses, fumigated the
halls and this is what had delayed the allocation of bed spaces to the
students. They, however, started moving in from Sunday, Jan. 17,” he said.
Ogbinaka said that renovation and
reconstruction works on the halls started last year. He added that one of the
halls, El-Kanemi, is being converted from wooden bungalow structures to
concrete en-suite type.
“We are re-constructing the El-kanemi
Hall for expansion to accommodate about 1,000 students. We are also
renovating the Sodeinde Hall and the students are really excited about this
development.
“Some university workers are also
moving into these halls as hospitality staff. They have been trained to run the
hostels like what obtains in highbrow hotels, with a feeling of home away from
home. The hostels will no longer necessarily be the normal place to sleep and
wake up alone as there are many fresh innovations being put in place,” he said.
He called on parents, students and
other stakeholders to show more understanding.
“The existing halls of residence have
been overcrowded, overused, and the facilities have been overstretched,” he
added.
Meanwhile, the university has refuted
claims that it shut the postgraduate students’ hostels while the students were
writing examinations.
The Deputy Registrar, Information, Mr
Toyin Adegbule said the hostels were shut because postgraduate students are on
vacation.
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