Job Racketeering: VCs Deny Alleged Bribing Of Reps’ Panel

Federal university vice chancellors have denied allegations that they were asked to give bribes to members of the House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee investigating job racketeering in federal Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to get soft landing.

The committee of vice chancellors of federal universities which appeared along with the National Universities Commission (NUC) made the denial  at the resumed hearing of the panel at the National Assembly yesterday.

This came barely 24 hours after the committee of federal polytechnic rectors also denied the same allegation that the lawmakers solicited bribes from them so that they would have an easy sail in the investigation.

An online newspaper had reported that some members of the committee asked vice chancellors and heads of tertiary institutions to pay certain amounts of money as bribes into a bank account.

Speaking on behalf of his colleagues, the vice chancellor of University of Jos, Professor Ishaya Tanko, said the medium did not get its facts very well.

Tanko said the money that was sent by some vice chancellors was meant for  foreign exchange for them to attend an international workshop organised in Birmingham next Tuesday.

“During our last meeting, we requested for two weeks because some of the universities did not come with some of the documents required from them. But we read the very disturbing media publication and I can say that the vice chancellors are not part of that. They  have not provided any bribe to anybody.

“I can confirm that majority of the vice chancellors are going to travel between Saturday and Monday because the training commences on Tuesday in Birmingham.

“Somebody suggested that vice chancellors who wish to source foreign exchange from him can transfer some money to him to get foreign exchange to travel,” he said.

Acting Executive Secretary of NUC, John Maiyaki, said: “The online media publication is regrettable, whatever the substance is. We do not in any way wish that this will impede the excellent ties and relationship between this vital arm of government and the Nigerian university system. This is one system that holds a lot of promises for the Nigerian university system.”

Chairman of the Ad-hoc Committee, Hon. Yusuf Gagdi said his panel would not be distracted from the central issue that had been put in place to address and threatened to take legal action against the online newspaper.