Prof Tanko Ishaya, Vice-Chancellor, UNIJOS
The University of Jos (UNIJOS) is set to graduate 60,000 students in its 35th and 36th combined convocation and golden jubilee celebrations. The graduands include 9,236 diploma holders, 37,742 first-degree graduates, and 13,023 postgraduates, Vice-Chancellor Professor Tanko Ishaya told journalists at a pre-convocation briefing.
Prof. Ishaya highlighted the university’s growth since its founding as a University of Ibadan campus in 1972 and its attainment of full federal university status in 1975. Today, UNIJOS has 17 faculties and 93 academic programmes, and is developing a Technology Centre of Excellence in Artificial Intelligence and Data Science. The convocation will feature an anniversary lecture by the newly appointed Defence Minister, General Christopher Gwabin Musa (rtd), and honours for the university’s founding fathers.
However, the celebrations have been overshadowed by tragedy. A bus carrying 11 UNIJOS students collided with a trailer on Zaria Road, Jos, in the early hours of Friday. Eight students, all male, were killed, while three others remain hospitalised. Eyewitnesses said the bus was speeding and overtaking dangerously.
The Federal Road Safety Corps has launched an investigation and warned drivers against night trips, speeding, and reckless driving. University authorities described the deaths as “a dark day” for the institution and called for stricter road safety measures nationwide.
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