Part 1 here.

It’s worth noting that three different schools (faculties) were created under the watch of Prof. F. C. Eze as the FUTO Vice-Chancellor (VC) to expand the scope of the University.

The schools are namely: School of Information and Communications Technology (SICT), School of Electrical Systems Engineering Technology (SESET), as well as the School of Medical Sciences otherwise known as the College of Medicine and Health Sciences, which was approved by the appropriate authorities after undergoing rigorous verification processes.

In addition, three Centers of Excellence were duly established in the University under his reign. They are: the Africa Centre of Excellence on Future Energies and Electrochemical Systems (ACE-FUELS), powered by the World Bank; the Centre of Excellence on Sustainable Procurement, Environment and Social Standards Enhancement (CEs-PESS), also powered by the World Bank; and the Centre of Excellence on Local Materials Substitutions, powered by the Nigerian Content Development & Monitoring Board (NCDMB).

His administration further established the Centre for Waste to Wealth Research and Development in the FUTO Community, having understood the economic value of waste recycling.

His wealth of wisdom also ensured the creation of the Office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (DVC) on Research, Development and Innovations, a section that has tremendously helped to write the University’s name in gold. Little wonder his leadership mantra remains ‘Driving the Culture of Excellence’.

Towards ensuring that the general public was kept abreast of happenings in the University on a regular basis, via the social media channels, he created a Digital (online) Section.

In spite of the paucity of funds occasioned by various factors, such as the Treasury Single Account (TSA), national economic recession, and the emergence of the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19), Prof. F. C. Eze worked tirelessly to ensure the FUTO Community received a face-lift as regards infrastructural development.

Among many essential structures thoroughly renovated amidst the COVID-19 pandemic was the dilapidated Senate Building, which comprises the offices of countless administrative officers of the University, including the Principal Officers. The edifice in question is now obviously wearing an elegant new look.

In the area of human capital development, it is on record that since the inception of FUTO, Prof. Eze’s administration created the highest number of job opportunities for the teeming young Nigerians who had remained jobless for several years.

The welfare and wellbeing of the overall staff were constantly taken as priority despite the harsh economic situation, not until the emergence of the Integrated Personnel Payroll Information System (IPPIS) whereby workers’ salaries and incentives were, and still, directly paid from the Office of the Accountant General.

Acknowledging the essence of competence, the career-minded VC surrounded his administration with respected and competent academics and administrators, including the Heads of Departments, Deans of Studies, Directors of Centers, Coordinators of Units as well as the Principal Officers.

At all times, he ensured that meritocracy supersedes favouritism while recruiting officers or individuals in various vacant positions. He equally involved himself in activities that are devoid of politics.

This could be attested to in the hitch-free rigorous exercise that saw the emergence of Prof. Mrs. Nnenna N. Oti as the 8^th Substantive VC of the revered University, whose leadership era graciously commenced on 19^th June, 2021.

Lest I forget, under Prof. Eze, countless students and staff of the University won different kinds of laurels in the areas of technology, research, innovation and sports, just to mention but a few, due to the tireless supports and efforts of his administration.

Inter alia, his administration produced a woman who knows her onus as a successor. Prof. Oti’s personality stands tall among that of other great women I have come across in recent times. Her background and antecedents are obviously so overwhelming and intimidating to the delight of all concerned.

It’s worthy of note that the aforementioned numerous feats wouldn’t have been possible if Prof. Eze didn’t maintain a sound and cordial relationship with the 11^th Governing Council of the University ably led by Prof. John Offem. It suffices to assert that the Council was pleased to have a man of his type as the FUTO VC and the Chairman of the University Senate.

These and many more outstanding achievements were what informed the decision of the numerous fora to individually put up outstanding reception for Prof. Eze when he was taking a bow as the 7^th Substantive VC of FUTO.

It’s thus needless to assert that all and sundry were honouring and celebrating this leader par excellence who indisputably distinguished himself in both academics and humanity.

Prof. Francis Chukwuemeka (F.C.) Eze is the immediate past and 7th Substantive Vice-Chancellor (VC) of the revered Federal University of Technology Owerri (FUTO).

He relinquished the mantle of leadership to the incumbent and 8th Substantive VC, Professor Mrs. Nnenna N. Oti on 18th June 2021, having meritoriously served the University for five consecutive years in accordance with the extant law.

Prof. Oti, who is the first female to occupy the highly-exalted position, was announced the 8th Substantive VC by the 11th Governing Council of the University led by Prof. John Offem on Tuesday, 13th April, 2021 after concluding a series of rigorous and transparent processes.

It would interest us to note that the entire FUTO Community was agog precisely on Thursday, March 17, 2016, following the emergence of Prof. Eze as the Seventh Substantive VC of FUTO, as was announced by the 10th Governing Council led by Dr. Emmanuel Enemuo after a series of rigorous interviews conducted among the aspirants made up of various well-celebrated professors.

Consequently, in June 19, 2016, he was successively enthroned as the 7th Substantive VC of FUTO, a position he held till the aforementioned date. Upon his assumption to duty, he passionately initiated a mantra for his administration “Driving the Culture of Excellence” and vowed to uphold its content at all cost.

Owing to his outstanding performance as the FUTO VC during his five-year tenure, various notable fora both in the University and beyond, in their respective capacities, thought it wise to organize resounding receptions for the rare gem and academic Icon.

Prof. Eze, a native of Amanato in Ideato-South LGA of Imo State – who is a professor of Experimental Solid State Physics and Material Science – obtained his first, Master’s and doctorate degrees from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), University of Dundee, Scotland and also UNN, respectively.

Down the memory lane, after his Bachelor of Science, he worked as a banker before joining the academia towards actualizing his dream of becoming a distinguished academic and researcher.

In his teaching career, he rose to become a veteran physicist. He has authored and co-authored numerous academic journals, text books and articles, among other countless publications in Industrial Physics. He is the former President of Nigerian Institute of Physics (NIP) Writers’ Series, and also a Fellow of the notable institute.

Prof. F. C. Eze served as a two-time Head of the Department (HOD) of Physics in FUTO, and subsequently became the Dean of the School of Sciences (SOSC), which was later split into two separate faculties namely: School of Physical Sciences (SOPS) and School of Biological Sciences (SOBS) by the University’s Management.

Thereafter, he was recognized as the Director of the Nuclear Energy and Research Centre of the University, a position in which he relentlessly and doggedly showcased the best in him to the envy of his colleagues, both far and near.

Due to his intimidating records and antecedents, in 2013, Prof. Eze was expectedly appointed as the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (DVC) on Administration under the leadership of Prof. C. C. Asiabaka, the Sixth Substantive VC of the University, a post he held till June 2016.

He is a renowned member of various local cum international professional and social societies, and a Christian to the core to the glory of God. As a devout Catholic and one who had distinguished himself in both humanity and science, he was inducted into the Knighthood of the Saint John International (KSJI) many years ago. The soft-spoken and humble professor, who believes in actions rather than words, is happily married with four children.

From the moment he assumed office as the Seventh Substantive VC of FUTO, the elegant and eloquent professor never relented in carrying out his duties passionately despite challenges and what have you. He overtime channeled his leadership prowess to only result-oriented initiatives.

He understood the essence of open-door administration and equally grants anyone a listening ear regardless of the circumstance. This attribute alone makes hundreds of thousands of people attracted to his person while in office.

As an administrator par excellence, he made frantic efforts to distance the FUTO Community from a political clime, by ensuring the required processes were deployed whenever administrative and academic issues/duties were carried out.

Prof. F. C. Eze is indisputably a well-experienced and passion-driven academic and leader. This is why, under his reign, he ensured academic matters were treated as priorities, hence always ready to grant the Student Union an audience each time they called on him with any concern.

His administration equally maintained a cordial relationship with the Alumni body. This is why, under his tenure, the FUTO Alumni Association was able to establish her presence in the University at all times.

The body initiated and completed various capital-intensive projects, ranging from prototype of staff quarters, Award of Scholarships, to the recent establishment of a 33KV Power-Line that ensures steady electricity supply within the shores of the University, among many others.

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Months after e-commerce giant Amazon made a move to cut ties with payment company Visa, over the cost of transaction processing fees, the two companies have reached an agreement to continue their partnership.

Visa has made many changes to its business to accommodate the changes in the global financial ecosystem. That includes onboarding crypto currency as means of payment through partnership with blockchain-powered cross-border payment facilitating companies.

The agreement means that the duo will continue to run their businesses without disruption. The cryptocurrency industry with its DeFi system has not only simplified payment, but also made it cheaper, especially cross-border payment. This, in addition to the burgeoning fintech industry, has created more competition, as Reuters noted among other factors in the report below, forcing traditional payment companies to reconsider the cost of their transaction processing fees.

Details of the deal were not disclosed but Visa and other payments cards have faced increased pressure about their fees as more shoppers have turned online during the pandemic. The spat had highlighted the growing clout of retailers in the fee battle.

Amazon had said in November it was considering dropping Visa as partner on its U.S. co-branded credit card, after earlier confirming it would stop accepting Visa credit cards in the UK because of high transaction fees.

The agreement announced on Thursday means Amazon customers can continue using Visa credit cards in its stores, the e-commerce group said in a statement.

Neither side said what fees would be levied in future – an issue which came to the fore particularly in Britain after an EU-enforced cap on card fees is no longer in place following Brexit.

The dispute between Amazon and Visa in the UK was seen as a bad sign for the card industry by some analysts, who argued it could presage a fight in the much bigger U.S. market.

British lawmakers said last month they planned to scrutinize increases in the fees Visa and Mastercard charge businesses after the country’s payments regulator found no evidence to justify the rises.

Last October, Visa began charging 1.5% of transaction value for credit card payments made online or over the phone between the UK and EU, and 1.15% for debit card transactions, up from 0.3% and 0.2%, respectively.

Average credit card processing fees across the industry range between 1.5% and 3.5%, according to analysts.

Retailers have in the past accepted credit card processing charges as an inevitable cost, but that could be changing because of innovations and increased consumer choice in the payments sector.

Credit cards accounted for a third of North American e-commerce spending in 2020, according to payments giant WorldPay, but mobile payment options like Venmo and “buy now, pay later” (BNPL) financing plans are gaining ground.

While alternative payments have been growing for years, the pandemic accelerated a downward trend in credit card applications and boosted the popularity of BNPL financing.

Credit cards’ share of North American e-commerce spending declined 7% last year, according to WorldPay, while BNPL’s share increased 78%.

Other big retailers have in the past settled fee disputes with Visa after announcing they were going to quit taking Visa credit cards in narrow segments of their businesses.

Walmart Inc’s (WMT.N) unit in Canada, for example, said in 2016 it would stop accepting Visa credit cards after being unable to reach agreement on fees. Seven months later the companies said they had settled the matter.

Visa said it was pleased to have reached a broad, global agreement with Amazon.

“This agreement includes the acceptance of Visa at all Amazon stores and sites today, as well as a joint commitment to collaboration on new product and technology initiatives,” a Visa spokesperson said in an email.