By Gabriel Udeh, Kaduna
Kaduna State College of Education (CoE), Gidan Waya, is getting a face lift as several projects sponsored by the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) will be completed beginning from this month of March and beyond.
This was gathered during an on-the-spot assessment of infrastructure by journalists at the permanent site of the school in Gidan Waya, Jema’a Local Government Area (LGA) of Kaduna state yesterday.
The Projects which are nine in numbers, are estimated at a total cost of N750m.
They include the construction of a new block of offices for Academic staff valued at N258 million for which N126 million has been paid to M/S Hayes Multi System Ltd., the contractor.
“Another big project at the verge of completion is the construction of the N125 million ICT Resources Centre which, when completed, will make the college one of the ICT hubs in Kaduna state”, it was gathered.
According to documents obtained by our reporter, the project is handled by M/S Denmark Construction and so far, the contractor has so been paid N62 million.
In addition to the above, M/S Hannasons Nig. Ltd, is equipping the ICT Centre with about 700 computers and related facilities including its furnishing at a cost of N125 million. Documents at our disposal shows that the contractor was paid N106 million so far.
“But what excites most of the students on the campus is the construction of an ultra-modern Physical Health Education Complex complete with indoor games facilities. “The N162 million complex, when completed, will have a sports hall with modern equipment including a gymnasium and exclusive classrooms and staff offices for its PHE department.
“It’s going to be the best we have ever had in Kaduna and neighbouring states. And it will attract very respectable sport instructors and sports enthusiasts all over the country,” an elated staff who does not want his name mentioned informed our reporter at the site.
It was also gathered that TETFund had abandoned funding of these projects since 2018, when inspectors from the Federal Government funding agency could not match the level of money disbursed and the percentage of work done on site.
“TETFund said it will not pay another kobo on the projects as long as there was discrepancy in the percentage of job done and money paid out to the contractors before 2018,” said Danladi M. Aduwu, the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the school.
“This was the situation that the current Provost , Prof. Alexander Kure inherited when he became the Provost of the School in 2018,” he said.
“I cannot count the number of trips that the Provost of the school made to TETfund Headquarters in Abuja to convince its management that under his watch, all monies released for TETfund projects in the school will be accounted for.
“What he did was to get the contractors and make them return to site. And once they returned and took the project commensurate to the funds released, TETFund became confident in the new leadership of this school and that is how you see all the revolutionary strides in infrastructure that the school is enjoying,” he said.
“He is renovating dilapidated structures and improving on the poor road networks even with the tiny running cost he gets. Go to our Consultancy Services at our Kafanchan Campus and see how he has turned the place around,” he said.
“The Provost has always maintained that he does not want to disappoint Governor Nasir el-Rufai who appointed him, knowing that the governor is a man of class and taste when it comes to learning,” he went on.
“He also acknowledges that the school is the most important government asset in Southern Kaduna which has turned out quality manpower into the Nigeria educational sector for which he is expected to improve on what he met, not draw it back.”
The Scholar further affirmed his readiness to partner with major stake holders in education to ensure the College remains the Flagship amongst similar institutions..
