President Bola Tinubu on Thursday described the Federal Polytechnic Ayede as the best-performing among federal polytechnics established in 2021, commending its infrastructural expansion and academic stability as the institution graduated 325 students at its maiden convocation ceremony.

Tinubu, who is the Visitor to the institution, was represented by the Director, Polytechnics and Allied Institutions, Dr. Usman Ejeh. He said the polytechnic’s achievements within five years were “remarkable and strategic,” adding that its growth aligns with the Federal Government’s reform agenda for technical and vocational education.

“The Federal Polytechnic Ayede has distinguished itself among its peers established in 2021. Its commitment to infrastructure, skills acquisition, and academic stability clearly positions it as a model institution,” he said.

The President noted that his administration had introduced key reforms, including the students’ loan scheme under the Nigerian Education Loan Fund, curriculum modernisation, infrastructural renewal, and digital skills expansion to reposition the education sector.

“We are determined to build institutions that will produce innovators, entrepreneurs, and solution providers for our economy,” he added, urging the management to consolidate on existing gains.

Earlier, the Rector, Dr. Taofeek Abdul-Hameed, described the combined convocation for the 2023/2024 and 2024/2025 academic sessions as a defining milestone in the institution’s history.

“We gather here today to officially present to the world the first set of graduates produced by the Federal Polytechnic Ayede. This indeed calls for celebration,” he said.

The rector expressed appreciation to Tinubu for policies aimed at strengthening technical education and acknowledged the support of regulatory and funding agencies, including the National Board for Technical Education and the Tertiary Education Trust Fund, for accreditation and infrastructural interventions that accelerated the institution’s development.

He disclosed that 138 students graduated in the 2023/2024 session and 187 in the 2024/2025 session, bringing the total number of graduands to 325.

According to him, Miss Taiwo Ibukunoluwa Arinola of Science Laboratory Technology and Mr. Olapese Quadri Ayofe of Agricultural Technology emerged as the overall best graduating students for their respective sessions with a cumulative grade point average of 3.96.

Beyond the award of National Diploma certificates, Abdul-Hameed said each graduand obtained at least two additional vocational certifications through the Centre for Skills Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development.

“Our graduates are not just job seekers but employers of labour. We have deliberately equipped them with relevant entrepreneurial and technical competencies,” he said, adding that 68 major projects had been executed across the temporary and permanent sites through TETFund interventions, Federal Government appropriations, and donor support.

The projects, he said, include a main administrative building, ICT centre, health centre, engineering workshops, and improved power infrastructure, while the institution also recorded over 64 research projects and nine TETFund-supported fabrication innovations. He also reaffirmed the polytechnic’s resolve to relocate fully to its permanent site in Ayede, Ogo-Oluwa Local Government Area, and appealed for improved access roads and hostel accommodation.

In his remarks, the Chairman of the Governing Council, Hon. Yakubu Dati, described the ceremony as a celebration of vision and collective commitment, urging government, corporate organisations, and well-meaning Nigerians to support the institution with critical infrastructure, particularly road networks and student hostels, through direct intervention or Public-Private Partnership arrangements. He commended the Federal Government, the Oyo State Government, and the host community for sustaining a peaceful environment, and appreciated the Executive Chairman of the Nigeria Revenue Service, who was also the guest lecturer, Dr. Zacch Adedeji, for supporting the construction of an access road to the institution.

Fellowship awards were conferred on the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas; the Executive Chairman of the Nigeria Revenue Service, Dr Zacch Adedeji; and Dr Abubakar Isa.

The event attracted traditional rulers, including the Soun of Ogbomosoland, Oba Afolabi Ghandi Olaoye; the Timi of Ede, Oba Adesola Munirudeen Lawal; and the Aresa of Iresapupa, Oba Moses Olayiwola Ajiboye, as well as Senators Ayo Adeseun, Abdulfatai Buhari, prominent Ogbomoso leaders, rectors of sister polytechnics, scholars, and other dignitaries.

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt Hon Tajudeen Abbas, and the Executive Chairman of the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS), Dr. Zacch Adelabu Adedeji, will on Thursday grace the maiden combined convocation ceremony of the Federal Polytechnic, Ayede, Oyo State, where no fewer than 325 students will be awarded National Diploma certificates.

The Pioneer Rector of the Polytechnic, Dr. Taofeek Abdul-Hameed, disclosed this on Monday during a pre-convocation press conference at the institution’s Permanent Site in Ayede, describing the event as “a defining milestone” in the history of the young federal institution.

“This is the first convocation of the Federal Polytechnic, Ayede, since its establishment on January 19, 2021, and it marks our transition from take-off to consolidation,” the Rector said.

Abdul-Hameed said the speaker would chair the convocation lecture, while the NRS boss, Adedeji would deliver the lecture titled, ‘The Role of Technology in Implementing Nigeria’s New Tax Laws: Challenges and Prospects’, noting that the calibre of invited dignitaries reflected the institution’s rising national profile.

“The presence of the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Executive Chairman of the Nigeria Revenue Service underscores the growing relevance of the Polytechnic in national development discourse,” he said.

According to the Rector, the combined convocation covers the 2023/2024 and 2024/2025 academic sessions and will span six days, featuring a novelty football match, convocation lecture, award of National Diploma certificates, and the conferment of fellowship honours.

He disclosed that 138 students completed their programmes in the 2023/2024 academic session, while 187 students graduated in the 2024/2025 session, bringing the total number of graduands to 325.

On academic expansion, Abdul-Hameed said the Polytechnic commenced academic activities in 2023 with four National Diploma programmes but has grown to run 13 fully accredited ND programmes across five schools.

“We currently operate across the Schools of Engineering, Environmental Technology, Management Sciences, Science and Technology, and Agricultural Technology, all with full NBTE accreditation,” he stated.

The Rector attributed the institution’s rapid growth to sustained support from the Federal Government under the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, alongside interventions from the Federal Ministry of Education, the National Board for Technical Education, and the Tertiary Education Trust Fund.

“These interventions have strengthened our capacity in programme accreditation, staff development, and infrastructure delivery,” he said.

Abdul-Hameed further revealed that the Polytechnic had executed 68 major infrastructural, ICT, and utility projects across its Permanent and Temporary campuses, adding that work was ongoing on the access road linking the Permanent Site from Idi-Araba.

“While we have made significant progress, we still require support in access roads, student hostels, power supply, water facilities, and digital infrastructure to sustain our growth,” the Rector appealed.

The Senior Staff Association of Nigeria Polytechnics (SSANIP) has rejected the reviewed Schemes of Service for Nigerian Polytechnics prepared by the National Board for Technical Education, describing them as unfair and discriminatory against non-teaching staff.

The association disclosed this in a minority report submitted to the Minister of Education after a stakeholders’ meeting held in Abuja on Monday, January 19, 2026.

In the report signed by its National President, Comrade Philip Adebanjo Ogunsipe, SSANIP said the reviewed schemes introduced wide disparities between teaching and non-teaching staff, particularly at the entry point of employment in the polytechnic system.

According to the association, the schemes would also undermine career progression for non-teaching staff by preventing officers with first degrees from advancing to CONTEDISS 15, which is equivalent to Grade Level 17 in the federal public service.

Ogunsipe said documentary evidence confirming the existence of the CONTEDISS 15 salary structure, including records from the National Salaries, Income and Wages Commission and the Office of the Head of Service of the Federation, were ignored during deliberations.

He also criticised comments attributed to the Chairman of the Committee of Heads of Polytechnics and Colleges of Technology of Nigeria, who reportedly stated that rectors and some non-teaching staff could not retire on the same grade level.

Describing the remarks as “demeaning, elitist and discriminatory,” Ogunsipe said they were inconsistent with extant public service rules.

“With this minority report, the association hereby passes a vote of no confidence in the ability of the NBTE to provide fair, balanced and acceptable schemes of service for polytechnics in Nigeria, given its persistent bias and disregard for established public service regulations,” he said.

The Union urged the Minister of Education to examine its protest objectively in the interest of equity, industrial harmony and strict adherence to public service norms.

Ogunsipe expressed confidence in the minister’s leadership, describing him as a dispassionate public servant, and said addressing SSANIP’s concerns would ensure that polytechnics are not denied the parity enjoyed by universities and colleges of education.

SSANIP also rejected the decision taken at the stakeholders’ meeting to exclude the Office of the Head of Service of the Federation from the preparation and approval of the reviewed schemes.

The union insisted that the Office of the Head of Service of the Federation remains the only federal government agency legally mandated to prepare and approve Schemes of Service for public institutions.