Whoever is behind the unholy annexation of a portion of the Department of Printing Technology, School of Technology, Kano State Polytechnic, for the proposed establishment of the Kano State Polytechnic Printing Press cannot, in good conscience, claim to be acting in the best interests of Kano State, the Polytechnic, or the generality of the people of the state.
The proposal, if allowed to go ahead in its present form, raises serious questions about the future of one of the Polytechnic’s important academic departments.
Rather than weakening the department by taking away part of its space, facilities or functions, the priority should be to strengthen it, modernise its equipment, improve its learning environment and reposition it to produce graduates capable of meeting the changing demands of the printing, publishing and digital media industries.
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The Department of Printing Technology is not merely a physical space that can be carved up whenever management considers it convenient.
It is an academic and professional unit with a history, staff, students, equipment and specialised training responsibilities.
That is why any attempt to appropriate part of it for a separate printing press without a compelling academic and institutional justification could have far-reaching negative consequences.
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The question that should therefore be asked is: Why should a portion of an existing academic department be sacrificed to create a printing press when the Polytechnic already has an established Department of Printing Technology with the professional knowledge and technical capacity to manage printing-related operations?
If the objective is to establish a functional and commercially viable Polytechnic printing press, there are better and more sensible ways to achieve it without undermining an academic department.
The institution can explore a structure that allows the printing press to operate effectively while maintaining the integrity, space, equipment and academic responsibilities of the Department of Printing Technology.
Or rather, the Polytechnic can create a new Printing Section under the Central Administration and give it an appropriate name with its managers.
The proposal can be included in the Polytechnic’s annual budget and submitted to the government for approval and funding.
This would provide the needed printing facility without annexing any part of the Department of Printing Technology or disrupting its academic activities.
Those responsible for making such a decision must also consider the interests of current and future students, rather than pursuing selfish interests at the expense of the institution and its students
The Polytechnic should be expanding facilities and opportunities for students, not taking away resources from a department whose practical training depends heavily on adequate space and access to printing equipment.
This is why the proposed annexation deserves serious scrutiny and careful reconsideration before any final decision is taken.
It should not be treated as a routine administrative adjustment. It is a decision capable of affecting the identity, effectiveness and future development of the Department of Printing Technology.
Kano State Polytechnic needs policies that build its academic departments, preserve its professional heritage and create greater opportunities for students—not decisions that could gradually weaken established departments in the name of administrative convenience.
I am sure those in authority at the Polytechnic are fully aware of the shortage of printing machinery and equipment, which has continued to impede the department’s practical classes.
I had expected the management to do everything possible to address this shortage by providing the necessary equipment, rather than pursuing what appears to be an unwise move that could ultimately reduce the department to something entirely different.
I do not want those currently in authority at the Polytechnic to create a bad history for themselves.
Nobody remains in office forever, and whatever decisions they make today will eventually become part of the institution’s history.
I would hate to see them remembered as the administrators who weakened or battered one of the Polytechnic’s established departments.
