Our response to publication in the Punch Newspapers of 25th of March, 2008 is as follows:

1. The writer could not have been our student as the information below is available to them. However, for public information and avoidance of doubt, our Students, Parents and all other stakeholders should be rest assured that it is mandatory for all graduates of recognized universities in Nigeria to be mobilized for NYSC. It is equally an offence under the law for any person or authority to prevent duly qualified graduates from participating in the NYSC. However there are due processes for enlistment as explained in item 5 below.
2. Lead City University has not graduated any student as of this moment. Completion of requirements for graduation is not tantamount to convocation.
3. LCU is just in it’s fourth session since the university was given "approval for immediate take-off” by the Federal Executive Council on February 16th, 2005. The analysis of the academic sessions covered so far is stated below

1st Academic Session: March 2005 – November 2005
2nd Academic Session: December 2005 – September 2006
3rd Academic Session: November 2006 – August 2007
4th Academic Session: November 2007 – July 2008

4. LCU will have its first convocation in the first week of September 2008 as approved by Senate and Council.

5. Some of the Direct Entry (Three year Programme) candidates without outstanding courses have completed the requirements for graduation by October 2007. Others did not defend their dissertation until December 2007. However, the results were approved by Senate in January 2008. Consequent upon this, the Registrar of the University took the list to the NYSC headquarters in Abuja for possible mobilization for March 2008. There and then, the NYSC informed the university that new universities joining the NYSC scheme would first undergo pre-mobilisation workshop. This will come up in July 2008. Thereafter the NYSC would release forms to graduating students who would then be mobilized for September 2008 batch. This is why they missed the March 2008 mobilisation.

6. In November 2007, the University had it very first NUC accreditation exercise. The result of that exercise has just been forwarded to the University last week. We are very pleased to inform all the stakeholders that the University scored 70% which is quite rare for a new University that participated in the exercises for the first time. Nonetheless, the university is insisting that it should have scored 100% given the fact that it met all the stated benchmarks. A Ministerial audit of the remaining 30% is been requested from the appropriate authority and the result will be communicated in due course.



Signed
Ayo Owolabi
Director, Corporate Affairs and Communications