History of Federal Polytechnic Bauchi
The Polytechnic started skeletal work in May 1979. However, academic activities actually took off on 22nd November 1979 with an initial student population of 245 registered in eleven departments. Apart from those admitted for the introductory course, all the other students were admitted for the 4-year Nigerian National Diploma (NND) Programme.
The Polytechnic started with initial staff strength of 138 comprising 45 and 93 senior and junior staff respectively.
The pioneer principal officers who managed the affairs of the Polytechnic were:
- ENGR. M.O. ANYIAM – RECTOR
- MR. DURO ORISANAIYE – DEPUTY REGISTRAR
- MR. D.G. SANGAL – PRINCIPAL LIBRARIAN
- MR. OZO NEBO – SENIOR ACCOUNTANT
- PROF. J.F. LEMEN – DEAN SCH. OF TECHNOLOGY
- MR. E.M.O. ALAIYEMOLA – AG. DEAN SCHOOL OF BUSINESS STUDIES
- MR. A.M. CHANDRY – DEAN SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY
The first Governing Council of the Polytechnic under the Chairmanship of Alhaji Y.A. Olatunji was appointed in February 1981.
The Polytechnic administrative departments were located in two buildings along Yandoka Road while a part of the Bauchi Teachers College now General Hassan Usman Katsina Unity College was offered by the Bauchi State Government for use of the Polytechnic as students’ hostels, cafeteria, lecture rooms, typing studio, library and medical centre. In 1980, when the Bauchi State Government decided to establish an Advanced Teachers’ College now College of Education, Azare, in Bauchi Metropolis, the Polytechnic vacated the Unity College to its permanent Site. Consequently, some houses were rented along Ran Road in downtown Bauchi and used for academic activities. Some other rented buildings were used as female hostels in Yelwa village while the male hostels were located along Maiduguri Road, near Gubi Dam Road junction.
From the inception of the Polytechnic, the idea of establishing a demonstration farm for the Department of Agricultural Engineering was nurtured. Consequently, a road camp situated at Wailo, about 60 kilometres from Bauchi metropolis used by the Societies General Enterprises Nigeria (SGEN), Company.
The original idea of a demonstration farm at Wailo crystallized into a satellite campus in 1981 when the newly established Department of Agricultural Engineering moved with the Department of Basic Science to that location. The site was christened Wailo campus and a Director, Dr. N.C. Udeh was appointed to manage its affairs.
At the beginning of the 1982/83 session, all the units of the Polytechnic in Bauchi metropolis moved to the permanent campus.
The Polytechnic permanent campus occupies an area of about 750 hectares and is situated at Gwallameji village along Bauchi – Dass Road. It has been planned to be a modern self-contained campus with residential, academic, and recreation facilities. The Polytechnic provides all the necessary facilities required for the smooth running of the institution which includes offices, laboratories and workshops, staff houses, demonstration farm, demonstration hotel, Audio-Visual Centre (AVC), Medical Services, Library Services, Staff School, Sports Complex and Transport System.
With dwindling financial resources and galloping inflation in the country at large, the Polytechnic authorities decided to concentrate all its activities on one location only. Therefore, in 1983, Wailo Campus was closed down and the departments moved to the permanent site.
Source: fptb.edu.ng
