UniAbuja: ASUU rejects advert for VC position, asks applicants to steer clear
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), University of Abuja chapter, has rejected the advertisement for the institution’s vice chancellor position.
Addressing journalists on Thursday in Abuja, the chairperson of the university’s branch of ASUU, Dr Sylvanus Ugoh, said: “The union rejects the advertisement and shall resist it within the ambit of the law. The union wishes to inform intending applicants to steer clear until due process is adhered to.”
This is coming on the heels of a recent placement of advert in a national daily by the management of the university led by the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Abdulrasheed Na’Allah,
Ugoh stated that only the Governing Council has the right to appoint a substantive vice chancellor.
He explained that the advertorial, as part of the process of appointing a new vice chancellor, was unacceptable to the union and its members because it contravened relevant laws.
The union lamented that at different times, the federal government’s actions and inactions have contributed negatively to the smooth running of universities’ administration in Nigeria, especially the University of Abuja, saying “the congress was alarmed for the umpteenth time with the reports of issues in the university that have affected the smooth flow of academic cultures and traditions.”
The union said: “The Universities Miscellaneous Provision Act 1993 (as amended) 2003 and 2012 section 3 subsection 1 and 2 states: ‘Where a vacancy occurs in the post of a Vice Chancellor, the Governing Council shall advertise the vacancy in a reputable journal or a widely read newspaper in Nigeria.”
“The laws are very clear and unambiguous in this matter. The Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman, was quoted to have given approval for the advertisement of the would-be vacant position of the Vice Chancellor of the University of Abuja.
“Also, The Universities Miscellaneous Provision Act 2003 (as amended). Section 2AA states that: “The power of the Governing Council shall exercise as in the Law and statutes of each university and to that extent establishment circulars that are inconsistent with the law and statutes of the university shall not apply to the universities.”
The union also condemned the alleged illegal appointments of acting Deans of Faculties and the Provost College of Health Sciences, noting that the current administration has totally disregarded the provision of the Act.