The University of Abuja has, over the years, made frequent appearances in the national conversation — unfortunately, often for the wrong reasons. Since 2010, the institution has grappled with recurring leadership crises, resulting in the appointment and replacement of multiple Vice Chancellors and Governing Council Chairmen in repeated attempts to restore stability.
In 2014, a court ruling halted the appointment of Professor Mike Adiukwu as Vice Chancellor, deepening the already fragile situation. The tenure of Professor Sunday Adelabu was also marked by internal challenges. The most recent controversy concerns the removal of Professor Aisha Maikudi as Vice Chancellor, a decision that once again destabilised the university’s leadership structure.
Professor Maikudi, a distinguished Professor of Law, was appointed Vice Chancellor in December 2024 after a selection exercise by the Governing Council chaired by Air Vice Marshal Sadiq Kaita. Prior to her substantive appointment, she had served as Acting Vice Chancellor for six months, following the completion of the tenure of Professor Abdulrasheed Na’allah. She had also served the university as Head of Department, Director, Dean, Deputy Vice Chancellor, and Acting Vice Chancellor — meaning she had held every major administrative position within the institution.
Her appointment was challenged by some individuals who claimed she did not have the “required 10 years post-professorial experience.” However, recent leadership transitions across universities show otherwise: the current Vice Chancellor of Bayero University Kano, appointed after Maikudi’s removal, is only two years her senior in professorial rank. Likewise, Professor Ngozi Lemchi, who was removed alongside Maikudi in February 2024 but later reinstated, has two years less professorial experience than Maikudi. The argument of tenure length is, therefore, selective, inconsistent, and unsupported by regulation.
Rather than allowing the Governing Council’s lawful decision to stand, the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, apparently advised the President to dissolve the Governing Council and remove Professor Maikudi on February 6, 2025.
In her stead, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu appointed Professor Patricia Manko Lar as Acting Vice Chancellor for a non-renewable six-month tenure. After her exit, Professor Matthew Adamu was appointed Acting Vice Chancellor for a period of 3 months to end 10th November 2025, yet the day (November 8, 2025,) that Professor Hakeem Babatunde Fawehinmiwas announced as substantive Vice Chancellor Professor Adamu’s tenure was later extended by three months, up to February 10, 2026 on which he will hand over to Professor Fawehinmiwa.
Notably, Professor Fawehinmi is serving as Vice Chancellor of the Nigerian British University at the time of his appointment to UniAbuja. This raises a serious question: Was there truly no qualified academic within the University of Abuja to lead an institution of its standing? That they have to wait for an applicant to finish his term elsewhere before taking over at the university of Abuja?
The pattern of appointments under the Minister’s oversight suggests otherwise. Professor Fawehinmi, a Professor of Clinical Anatomy and Biomedical Anthropology, is reportedly a close associate of both the Pro-Chancellor, Senator Lanre Tejuoso, and the Minister himself. The circumstances have therefore fostered the perception of ethnic favoritism, political interference, and targeted exclusion.
By every objective measure — academic merit, administrative experience, institutional service, and leadership capacity — Professor Aisha Maikudi remains eminently qualified to serve as Vice Chancellor of the University of Abuja. Her removal was unjustifiable, politically engineered, and fundamentally unfair.
Nigeria cannot afford to normalize injustice, especially within its academic institutions. Equity, due process, and institutional integrity must prevail.
It is not too late to correct this wrong. Just as Professor Ngozi Lemchi was reinstated when fairness was restored, so too must Professor Maikudi be reinstated in the interest of justice, credibility, and the future of the University of Abuja.
History is recording. Those who choose fairness now will be remembered kindly.
~ Adnan Mukhtar is a Public Affairs Analyst and University Lecturer, he writes from Kano.
