The external Governing Council Members of the University of Abuja (UniAbuja) have boycotted a meeting with the chairman of Governing Council, Air Vice Marshal Saddiq Ismaila Kaita (rtd), over the appointment of a substantive Vice Chancellor of the University.
LEADERSHIP gathered that Katia had called for the Council meeting late Monday to appoint a Substantive Vice Chancellor by 3:00pm on Tuesday.
However, a source close to the university said the external members were not aware of the decision of the chairman as he could not produce an agenda before the meeting.
The source, who pleaded anonymity, stated that the law is clear about the selection and appointment of Vice Chancellor and that the Council Chairman was not following due process.
According to the source, the law states that unless the chairman, two Council members who are not members of Senate, two representatives of Senate who are not members of Council, are present, any interview conducted for the selection of a VC is null and void.
“There is no provision for just one Senate representative or four members. The issue of quorum does not arise. All the members must be present,” the source said.
The External Council members who boycotted the meeting include: Prof Raphael Akinfeleye, representing South-West, Mrs. Chisom Dorcas Obih, representing South-East and Alhaji Sabo Bappayo Ahmed, representing North-East.
Recall that a group of 67 professors had stormed the Ministry of Education on Monday and submitted a protest letter to the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, calling for the dissolution of the council in order to start the VC selection afresh in line with due process as prescribed by the law, the conventions and traditions governing public universities.
The professors alleged that the council chairman rejected over 27 internal applications and 60 external applications, 87 in total and invited only three persons to favour his preferred candidate, who is the the Acting Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Aisha Maikudi, despite her alleged lack of requisite qualifications.
According to them, the council was improperly constituted, with internal members allegedly handpicked by the immediate-past Vice-Chancellor, Professor AbdulRasheed Na’Allah, during a strike action by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) chapter of the institution.
The professors also criticised the inclusion of a representative from the Federal Ministry of Education and a businesswoman on the council, asserting that the individuals lacked the expertise required to uphold quality assurance in higher education governance.
According to the petition, a key criteria for the Vice-Chancellor position, such as a minimum of 10 years of professorial experience, was allegedly disregarded in the advertisement for the post of Vice-Chancellor published in newspapers in August 2024, adding that the Acting Vice-Chancellor had only two years of experience as a professor, allegedly lacking scholarly visibility, and has weak academic credentials.
The aggrieved academics also called for the dissolution of the Governing Council and the establishment of a new body to oversee the selection process, urging the Education Minister to nullify all decisions taken by the current council, warning that failure to act would set a dangerous precedent for other universities.
“We have lost total faith and confidence in the Governing Council to be fair and just in producing the best and most qualified Vice Chancellor for the University.
“Thus, we urge you to take immediate corrective action to restore the integrity of the process by dissolving the Governing Council, declare their proceedings null and void, re-constitute a new Governing Council to superintend fresh and free process that will lead to the appointment of a substantive Vice Chancellor for the University of Abuja.
“Honourable Minister Sir, failure to address these concerns will have far-reaching consequences for the University and the higher education system in Nigeria as other Governing Councils will gladly emulate this ugly and unfortunate path taken by the University of Abuja Governing Council,” the protest letter read.
