DEVELOPING EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION AND INTERPERSONAL SKILLS
The above headline is the exact title of a lecture delivered by theRegistrar, Mr. D. A. Adeyemo, on the occasion of the 2nd FUOYEANUPA meeting/seminar held on June 19, 2015, at the university'smain auditorium, Oye-Ekiti.
Mr. Adeyemo likened the Administrative Officer (AO) to a prostituteand explained that the AO ought to be able to develop suchinterpersonal skills as would enable him work with all personsirrespective of their temperament group. It, therefore, amused himwhen some staff would come to him to seek redeployment on thereason that they couldn't get along with one person or another. TheRegistrar went ahead to disclose that communication fails when thereceiver is unable to understand the message in its intended form, advising that people should seek clarification where they do notunderstand the task given to them.
Identifying four temperament types of choleric, sanguine, melancholy and phlegmatic, he posited that a person's temperamentor personality, inherited along with other physical and physiologicalqualities that are carried by the genes, plays a key role in determininghis character traits. He, therefore, declared that knowledge of this fact would help staff to understand and manage one another for theultimate realization of the university's goals.
The Registrar was, however, quick to point out that people shouldmoderate their conducts and utterances and not hide under thetemperament concept to engage in unruly behaviour.
The event earlier had an interactive session where participant’s sharedtheir work experiences. Contributors were unanimous in decryingshortage of workspace, resource materials, as well as limited internetaccess. Participants were however advised to make personalsacrifices when required to achieve result in their assigned tasks.
Such sacrifice, according to the Registrar, would not go unnoticed asit would, at the appropriate time, give one an edge over one'scontemporaries in the work place.
CSSAN INAUGURATES EXCO
The newly elected executive of Crop Science Students Association of Nigeria, (CSSAN), FUOYE chapter solemnly pledged to approach their duty with every sense of responsibility. This vow was made as they took the oath of office following their inauguration which took place at the Faculty of Agriculture Theatre Hall, Ikole Campus on Wednesday March 17, 2015.
In his opening speech, Dr S. O. Adigbo who represented the Head of Department urged the students to commit themselves fully to the profession and be proud of their course of study. He stressed that Crop Science as both a discipline and profession is capable of assisting in feeding the nation as well checking economic dependency particularly in the area of food security. He reassured the students that they would not have any cause to regret that they took up the profession because there are plenty of opportunities for graduates and professionals of Crop Science.
Dr O. T. Adeniji, who administered the oath of office, also encouraged the pioneer executive of the association to work together as a team in favour of the students they represent. He admonished them to be proud of the profession and work to bring about innovative ideas and performances that will show-case the profession to the university community in particular and Ekiti State in general.
In his speech, Head of the Department, Professor S. A. Adebitan, who joined the ceremony later from an official engagement, assured the executive and all the students of his personal support and that of the department to ensure the association was sustained.
Delivering a goodwill message from the Programme Officer, Agricultural Development Programme (ADP) Ekiti State Chapter, Mr. T. O. Oyewumi, promised to collaborate with the university and students’ groups such as CSSAN in promoting the laudable profession. He assured the executive and students that the Programme Officer would welcome students that are ready to undertake Industrial Training (IT) programme in Ekiti State ADP. According to him, job opportunities abound for graduates of Agricultural Science in agricultural companies, commercial farms and government institutions, adding that the profession will give the students the privilege to double as self-employed and employers of labour.
Members of the CSSAN executive are Osadebey Philip Joseph, President, Bamiteko Monjolaoluwa, Vice President, Ahunanya Ezekiel Eberechukwu, General Secretary and AsonibareIteolorun Blessing, Treasurer. Others are ToluwalopeSaliuSuleman, P. R. O., AdaraTaiwo Mary, Welfare Director, Oyelowo Deborah, Financial Secretary and Fagbuaro Stephen Adegboyega Assistant General Secrtary.
FUOYE MEDICAL CENTRE ELABORATES ON BLOOD DONATION AND DRUG ABUSE
The Medical Centre of Federal University, Oye-Ekiti recently sensitized the university community on blood donation. In a one-day seminar entitledThanks for Saving My Life, the Head, University Medical Centre, V. A. Ige (MD), disclosed that a US report says that “every two seconds, someone will need blood to survive.” He encouraged people to donate blood as many persons who would still be alive had died from blood shortage in their body system.
Doctor Ige explained the connectivity of blood functions in the body which include transportation and distribution of oxygen, fighting against infection and transportation of food nutrients. He also emphasized on the benefits of blood donation to the donor because it reduces the risk of cancer, burns calories, allows free health check-up, helps to reduce excess levels of iron in the blood and above all, producing in the donor the joy of saving a life.
He revealed that the eligible age for blood donation is between 18 and 65 years while the donor must weigh not less than 50kg. He strictly warned that a person must not donate blood more than twice a year for health purposes. He, however, advised that before donation, one must undergo screening to ensure he does not display the high risk behaviours associated with certain infectious diseases such as HIV/AIDS, hypertension, syphilis, sleeping sickness, cancer, and diarrhoea, among others.
An officer from the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Mr. Peter Nnamani, spoke on drug abuse and related vices.
He mentioned some illegal drugs such as cannabis, marijuana, heroin and cocaine as distinct from the legal types which include off-counter drugs such as pain relievers. He classified drugs into therapeutic drugs and recreational drugs. According to him, therapeutic drugs are for curative purposes. Examples of therapeutic drugs are aspirin and
paracetamol for pains, antibiotics for infection, while recreational drugs are drugs used for fun. Their effects are often neglected.
Examples of this type are cigarettes and alcohol in beer. Mr. Nnamani warned that even the drugs designated as legal can be abused when taken without the doctor's prescription or by taking an overdose of prescribed drugs. These attitudes are also logged under drug abuse together with the use of the prohibited types. He disclosed that penalty for drug abuse is 15 years in jail with hard labour. In view of this, he advised strongly that students should stay away from drugs and be law abiding.
Mr. Nnamani stated that drug abuse starts from experimental stage to occasional stage, from where it moves to regular stage and finally to addicted stage and then develops into a societal problem. He identified some factors that lead to drug abuse as environmental factors, frustration, desire to succeed and economic depression. He also mentioned ways to identify an addict through arrogant attitude, physical appearance, red and puffy eyes, inability to concentrate, dishonesty, unreliablity, among other indicators. “If you are not concerned about it, you are yet to be a victim, that's why we must stand and fight against it in our society,” he said.
FUOYE officers present were the Registrar, Mr. Daniel Abiodun Adeyemo, who represented the Vice Chancellor, Professor Isaac Asuzu, Mrs. Olowokere who represented the Dean of Student Affairs, Dr. O. O. Fasoranti, and Head of Medical Centre, V. A. Ige (MD). Other members of staff of the university were also in attendance.
ICT, PLEASE MAKE THE INTERNET WORK
In our 21st century, the internet has become a sine qua non in corporate business and communications. In the university system, it has overtaken the conventional book library as a medium for research and other related academic practices.
Recognizing therefore that no corporate entity can thrive without the services that the internet offers, Federal University Oye-Ekiti (FUOYE) places high premium on internet availability within the campuses. Still very young and grappling with many onset challenges, the university has made it clear that internet availability is of fundamental importance to its operations. For this reason, the Vice Chancellor and management of the institution vote huge amounts of money every month to ensure that both students and staff have access to the internet for faster and better work output. It is also on record that FUOYE's positive response to the internet stimulus is a strong factor in the university's 16th position in the recent Webometric ranking.
Much as we commend the university's authority in this regard, it is noteworthy that access to the internet on campus is not widespread.
This means that while some buildings have no internet access at all, others enjoy only varying degrees of fluctuating coverage. We are convinced that full internet access will add greater impetus to productivity on the campuses. We therefore implore the ICT to evolve a longer lasting solution to the challenges of weak internet signal in the campuses.