By Sam Asoluka

The Federal University of Technology, Owerri (FUTO) was planted in Owerri in 1982. And for those who are not familiar with Imo State, the University is located in Obinze, Umuanunu, Ihiagwa, Dindi Ihiag­wa, Eziokele and Eziobodo. These are the initial six autonomous Communities in Owerri West, Imo State, that own the expanse of lands FUTO was planted. Now the institution has expanded to Okolochi, Emeabiam, Avu, Umuoma and Nekede all in Owerri West Local Government Council and Amaeze, Obibiezena, in Owerri North, Local Government Council.

To shield the full names of its locations, the institution probably settled for ‘Owerri’ be­cause the lands it grabbed from the poor farming communities is out of this world. So, Owerri as the location becomes convenient and a false face for the University’s unquenchable appetite for land grabbing.

In his pre convocation Press Statement, as reported in the Vanguard Newspaper of 3 April 2018, the Vice-Chancellor of the University Professor Francis C. Eze ‘lamented’ that the institution “lost N60 million to the VANDALS that destroyed the entire stretch of the completed perimeter fence, measuring about 1.5 kilometres, in the Umuanunu Obinze axis”.

The VC further said “In the early hours of Tuesday, March 13, 2018, some DISGRUNTLED and MISINFORMED ELEMENTS from Umuanunu, Obinze, destroyed the entire stretch of the completed fence. The incident has been reported to the appropriate authorities”

If the vituperation of the Vice Chancellor is anything to go by, it means the University is now at war again with their hosts Umuanunu and Obinze Autonomous Communi­ties. But let me quickly point out here that the VC went to the black market for his choice of words. The last time I checked, the word VANDAL was used freely during the civil war and on Radio Biafra. The word was used by the station to describe Nigerian soldiers who were invading Biafra. In turn, the Nigerians soldiers used ‘REBEL to describe the Biafra soldiers.

If Prof. Frances C. Eze, the Vice Chancel­lor of the Federal University of

Technology, Owerri could use the word VANDALS to describe whosoever that pulled down the 1.5 kilometres fence as he claimed, it shows that there is

something wrong in that institution of‘ higher learning’. And, it is also very disgusting for the Vice-Chancellor to describe his hosts as DISGRUNTLED and MISINFORMED.

If the VC of such a revered institution could drop so low in his choice of words to describe his host Communities, there is definitely a deficit of some sort in that environment of learning. And, if the host Communities so maligned turn round and describe the VC as a SABOTEUR would he sleep well at night considering that the word is a badge of infamy or rings a bell in the region if you know what I mean.

The VC continued “FUTO intends to continue to engage the representatives of the host communities in robust, construc­tive and meaningful dialogue towards the peaceful resolution of all contentious land issues.”

This is harebrained. How can the VC meaningfully engage the people he had bad-mouthed? The truth is that since FUTO was planted in the midst of the Communities, it has done little or nothing positive in terms of Community Relations or Corporate Social Responsibility. What the institution has been busy and positively doing is grabbing the lands of the host Communities which they have not adequately paid for.

The Communities allege that FUTO officers use the name of the Federal Government to grab their lands. And, when they grab the lands, those in charge at the particular time share the lands among themselves and their friends. So, for a comprehensive peace and better relationship with the Communities, the Federal Government should carry out a forensic audit of the lands in and around FUTO to know who owns what and when they acquired them. The audit might reveal some odious acquisitions.

The lands where the Federal Government planted FUTO are not conquered lands, neither are the lands bequeathed to the Federal Government of Nigeria by lost or long distant relatives. The lands belong to the Auton­omous Communities and FUTO is one of their tenants. But as a tenant to these Communities, the institution thread most often on aggression and hostility.

The Federal Government should as a matter of urgency call FUTO to order as it has ceaseless­ly waged wars since 2008 with the ­host Communities as a result of its bizarre land grabbing approach. The institution behaves as if it met zero Communities or zero human beings where it was planted and this behaviour must stop now.