The Source Magazine Online

...News from the depth, rooted in time

		Search Fo r
		Search Fo r

HOME

ARCHIVES

SUBSCRIPTION

ADVERT RATES

ABOUT US

JUNE 11, 2007 VOL. 21, NO. 9

Riddled With Vice

**Oby Ezekwesili**

The appointment of a substantive Vice Chancellor for the University of Agriculture, Makurdi (UAM), remains a pipe-dream as allegations of nepotism trail the last effort
By Sam Tyav, Makurdi
After the expiration of the five-year term of Professor James Ayatse, former vice chancellor of the University of Agriculture, Makurdi, it was then the responsibility of the visitor of the university, former President Olusegun Obasanjo to name a successor in August last year when he (Ayastse) was expected to hand over to a new vice chancellor.
The former VC had himself told journalists in May last year that he was only counting months before vacating the office. By August 2006 his tenure ended, but he vacated office in September, 2006. The new VC was to take over from him at that time.
Investigations by The Source, however, indicate that due process was followed in arriving at names to be sent to the visitor for appointment. As required by law, the university was to advertise the vacancy and that was done in The Daily Sun edition of March 17, 2006 and Daily Independent of March 21, 2006 which specified the requirements of a minimum of five years as a professor and not more than 60 years of age. This included other conditions of service applicable to the post.
Consequently, the council of the university at its 53rd meeting on Tuesday, May 18, 2006 constituted a search team as part of the process of appointing a new Vice chancellor for the university, in line with Decree No 11 of 1993, as amended by Decree 25 of 1996. The search team was head by Brig. General Ibrahim Sabo (Rtd), Professor L.L Bello, senate representative as member, Dr. T. A. Olusi, senate representative as member, and Mrs. T. S. Ediri, congregation representative as member.
Also, in order to ensure due process, the university’s Governing Council drew a shortlist of suitable candidates. This included those that responded to the advertisement and the list of those identified by the search team.
Again, as required by law, the Governing Council presented the short-list to the joint council and Senate/Academic Board selection committee to scrutinise the candidates’ Curriculum Vitae (CV) and to interview them and thereafter recommend to the council three names for consideration. Members of the Joint Council and Senate Selection Board were Alhaji Salihu Madalla Ahmed, pro-chancellor and chairman of council, chairman, Dr. E. Onucheyo, council representative member, Hon. Rabo Tambaya, council representative, Professor Jude Sammani Rabo, senate representative, Professor Daniel Kparevfa Adezwa, senate representative and Dr. Samuel Anefu Ede, registrar, as secretary. The Joint Council and Senate Selection Board, The Source learnt, assessed and examined the CVs of the candidates between Monday, July 17 and Friday, July 21, 2006. An interview followed between Monday, July 31 and Wednesday, August 2, 2006.
On the basis of overall performance, the scores obtained by each shortlisted candidate, after the technical evaluation and interaction, were collated and tabulated. Three candidates, The Source gathered, were recommended on the order of merit by the joint council and senate selection board to the council.
It is, in fact, on record that the Governing Council, during its meeting of Friday and Saturday, August 4 and 5, 2006 considered the report of the Joint Council and upheld the recommendations; thereafter, it submitted the names of the three candidates in order to merit to the Minister of Education for consideration by the visitor.
The Source learnt that since August lat year when the list was sent to the Education Ministers, she is still examining the submission. As required by law, the minister after examining the submission was expected to make recommendations to the visitor who thereafter would appoint any one of or reject all the three candidates. Whatever the visitor does, according to the procedure, has to be conveyed to the Governing council. The Source learnt however, that all these have not been done.
Worried by the development, the Council of Christian Elders recently sent a petition to the president. The elders claimed that they made several representations to the minister on the issue. According to the body, they were invited to Abuja early Mach 2007 and were exposed to certain things. “Three times, the reports of the selection exercise were sent to Abuja and three times the report disappeared, and that two times the reports were said to be wrongly produced and sent back to the university for reproduction, the report were also said to have been mutilated or badly tampered with by unknown persons at some other time,” the body said.
The Christian elders, The Source gathered, through their investigations discovered that the ministry forwarded the report to the National Universities Commission (NUC), where one of the candidates is said to be a member. He is Professor E I. Kucha, a serving member of the NUC board. According to the Christian Elders, the particulars of all the contestants, including tape recordings of the interview as well as other details were demanded for and received at the NUC on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Education.
The Source gathered that the selection process for the appointment of VC for the university finally got aborted in a letter dated April 16, 2007, signed by the permanent secretary of the Education Ministry, Dr. Aboki Zhawa, OON on behalf of the Federal Ministry for Education and addressed to the chairman of the Governing council, indicting the council for mishandling the selection process.
In a letter referenced FME/HE/CU/15/A/11/43, the permanent secretary conveyed the decision of the minister to re-advertise the vacancy and use the template on the selection criteria for vice chancellors. The council was directed to conduct and conclude the exercise in three months from the date of the receipt of the letter.
According to the letter, the process was cancelled because “the pro-chancellor’s letter ref. N0 R/UAM/ADM/131/VOL I, dated August 18, 2006 forwarding this matter was not signed; the original raw score sheets of interviewed candidates were not signed by any of the members of the Joint Selection Board, making the authenticity of the document doubtful ; that the alterations made on the scores of some of the interviewed candidates were also not initialed and one is in doubt as to the genuineness of the changes; that there were no medical or security reports on the recommended candidates as is the practice and the basis of the choice of the three recommended candidates can not be clearly determined.”
It is, however, not clear why it took the ministry 10 months before bringing its observations to the attention of the university’s Governing Council.
In his reaction, the pro-chancellor and chairman of the Governing Council, Alhaji Madalla Ahmed, in a letter dated May 16, 2007, acknowledged the receipt of the letter and said the council would comply with the directives to re-advertise the vacancy. However, the council chairman went ahead in his letter of receipt to affirm faith in the aborted process.
Hear him: “It is apt that I, on behalf of the Governing Council of UAM, emphasise that the selection process now jettisoned was done strictly in accordance with section 3 of the Universities (miscellaneous provisions) Decree No 11 of 1993, as amended by section 3 of the Universities (miscellaneous provisions) Amendment decree No 25 of 1996...”
The council boss disagreed with the ministry, as according to him, he signed the letter forwarding the original reports to the minister. Proof of this, he said, could be found on pages 12 and 13 in the attachment of the letter. The chairman claimed further that the original reports of the council on the selection process was also duly signed and hand-delivered to the personal secretary to the minister on August 22, 2006; it was collected by Ekpenyong O. E. The chairman then wondered why the secretary of the council, the registrar of the university and Alhaji Umar Isah, representative of the minister, would accompany him to submit an unsigned document.
He further stated that all the reasons the ministry advanced as being responsible for the cancellation of the process were taken into consideration and followed strictly. On the security report, the chairman said in his letter, that they requested for it from the State Security Services, but it was said not to be available. Instead, the SSS said they would send the report directly to the presidency, or the Ministry of Education.
But the general opinion of the staff of the university, as gathered by The Source, was for the Governing council to request for further directives or more explanations before proceeding with the advertisement. It was gathered, however, that the registrar and secretary to the council, Dr. Samuel Anefu Ede, had advised that requesting for more explanations before proceeding with advertisement would be interpreted as confrontation with the Federal Ministry of Education.
Meanwhile, Professor E. O. Ogunwolu remains the acting vice chancellor of the university, pending the appointment of the substantive vice chancellor.