Lawmaker calls for immediate dismissal of FCMLST Provost, Etukudo over lengthy stay, malpractices
CHIGOZIE AMADI
The member representing Langtang North-Central Constituency in the Plateau State House of Assembly, Daniel Nanbol Listick has called for the immediate dismissal of the Provost and Chief executive officer, of Federal College of Medical Laboratory Sciences and Technology (FCMLST) Jos, Dr. Sunday Etukudo.
Listick, a minority leader of Plateau 10th Assembly, chairman standing committee on Labour, security and member of other committees in the legislative arm, raised the alarm that Dr. Etukudo has continued to hold the provost position for 17 years is against the provision of the civil service rule.
The lawmakers who spoke with newsmen in Jos revealed that FCMLST, established in 1954 by the Federal Ministry of Health, has been a major player in providing middle-level manpower for the health sector. Unfortunately, its potential has not been fully realized due to issues of mismanagement and lack of proper governance under the current leadership.
According to him, “Etukudo’s practice for 46 years is wrong. He should have been retired by now. Secondly, holding the position of provost for 17 years is equally wrong. That position should be advertised, and a competent person should take over.
“The rules of public service are clear: whether you are a lecturer or in another position, you either retire at age 60 or after 35 years of service. I have documentation showing that Dr. Etukudo’s records are contradictory. Civil servants must be recruited at age 18, but his data doesn’t align. He joined the civil service in 1978, yet continues to manipulate the system, using bribes to cover his tracks….
The Lawmaker further reiterated that attempts by Etukudo to commence a Diploma, High National Diploma or Degree at the college without following proper procedures of certification is illegal.
“The Act that established the Medical Laboratory Science Council of Nigeria (MLSCN) regulates the practice of medical laboratory technicians, allowing them to practice and granting permits. However, it’s the universities that award degrees, such as a Bachelor of Medical Laboratory Science (BMLS).
“The MLSCN is not responsible for awarding degrees; it’s the universities that do that. Once you complete your degree, you must undergo a one-year mandatory internship to become a practicing medical lab scientist with a license.
“But when I studied the law during the public hearing, I noticed that wasn’t how it was initially. After we concluded, someone did something somewhere, and now the law seems skewed. I’m not against the college, but someone inserted a clause that allows them to run a diploma in medical laboratory science. There is no such thing! There’s no HND in medical laboratory science either. What the MLSCN and National University Commission (NUC) recognize is a Bachelor’s in Medical Laboratory Science.
Nanbol Listick who is a medical laboratory expert called on the Federal Ministry of health to suspend Etukudo and conduct a proper investigation. They should also halt the courses he is trying to start, saying Parents will send their children there for degree programs, but it’s against the new NUC rule.
Daily Champion Newspaper reports that there is a pending legal suit instituted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) against Dr. Sunday Etukudo alongside four others since 2017 at the Plateau State High Court over financial misappropriation.
It was also learnt that there is several petitions against the incumbent FCMLST provost on gross misconduct in the management of the college.
