“According to the people of the East and by extension the entire country; you realize that the issue of the Eastern Polytechnic having university status is not a new clarion call. We have been making this call for the past 15 years and so it is becoming so glaring that even as we speak, we still do not have university status. The East is going without a university. And so, I am using the opportunity while addressing the entourage from the Youth Commission, the UNDP and all other stakeholders to see how we can all work together to ensure we have a university in the East,” he said.
He added that the Eastern Polytechnic is the only higher institution of learning in the eastern stating that they are one of the leading technical institutions in the country.
“We have been doing a lot in terms of infrastructure and we have what it takes. We have one the biggest libraries, and we have the man power. All we need is support to build on that one. Our argument is that, it could be nice we start with what we have and build on it than starting a new university,” he added.
He lamented: “if you say you want to construct a new university, you don’t know how long it will take. In the first place, we all know that the economic status of the government but notwithstanding, the Eastern district polytechnic must be given university status to make it more viable.”
“We already have the polytechnic character which has made this institution distinct. We produce skilled men and women,” he added.
He called on the government to capacitate them better as an institution as they are the only higher institution of learning in the Eastern region of the country.
