The Rector of Kogi State Polytechnic, Lokoja, Prof. Salihu Sanusi Avidime, has praised President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for strengthening tertiary education through the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), describing the administration’s support as both sustained and transformative.
Prof. Avidime spoke on Friday as Dr. Abdulrahman Hassan Ocholi, newly appointed TETFund Board of Trustees member representing the North Central zone, made his first official visit to the institution. Dr. Ocholi was accompanied by other professionals from the education and technical sectors.
Reported by John Amos Onimisi, Ag. Coordinator, Directorate of Public Relations and Protocols, Kogi State Polytechnic, Lokoja.
Welcoming the delegation, Prof. Avidime called Dr. Ocholi’s appointment a mark of President Tinubu’s confidence in young, capable leaders, and credited both the President and Kogi State Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo for promoting emerging talent. He wished Dr. Ocholi a productive tenure.
Prof. Avidime said the growth recorded across Nigeria’s tertiary institutions in recent years would not have been possible without TETFund’s consistent interventions, which he tied directly to President Tinubu’s commitment to the education sector. He pledged that the institution’s appreciation would translate into continued support for the administration’s policies.
The Rector used the occasion to press the Polytechnic’s case for greater TETFund attention, appealing for priority consideration in intervention funding to address infrastructure gaps, complete stalled projects, and modernize teaching facilities. He assured that any support secured would be used responsibly, and expressed hope that Dr. Ocholi’s appointment would open a new phase of collaboration between TETFund and the institution.
In his response, Dr. Ocholi thanked the Polytechnic for its hospitality, noting that Prof. Avidime was the first institution head in the state to visit him after his appointment was announced. He commended President Tinubu’s backing of TETFund and praised Governor Ododo for supporting capable administrators, including Prof. Avidime himself. He also commended TETFund Executive Secretary Arc. Sunday Sylva Togo Echono for his leadership of the agency.
Dr. Ocholi said the visit was guided by four objectives: familiarizing himself with the institution, assessing challenges facing priority projects, identifying projects that have overrun their completion timelines, and inspecting projects ready for commissioning. He said the professionals in his entourage were on hand specifically to evaluate distressed projects and help fast-track their completion.
He pledged continued collaboration with the Polytechnic and committed to advancing education in the state beyond its current level.
The Polytechnic’s Director of Works and Services, Engr. Siyaka Michael Onumoh, welcomed Dr. Ocholi’s visit as a promising step toward addressing the institution’s infrastructural needs.
Separately, Dr. Onumoh Ahmed Yahaya, newly appointed Rector of the Nigeria-Korea Friendship Institute, used the occasion to appeal for institutional support, citing the growing number of Nigerian students studying in South Korea as evidence of the value of such partnerships. Dr. Ocholi asked that the request be submitted formally in writing for the Board’s consideration.
The visit concluded with both sides expressing commitment to deeper collaboration on infrastructure and human capital development in Kogi State.
