The sacking of the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Lagos, Professor Oluwatoyin Ogundipe, has been faulted by the Committee of Vice-Chancellors of Universities in Nigeria, CVCUN, as they described it as, “a funny situation”.
Calling upon the Governing Council of Unilag to follow due process in the removal, the committee said the embattled Vice-Chancellor should be given the opportunity to defend himself.
The committee said the law establishing universities gives the Governing Council the power to hire and fire a Vice-Chancellor but not in an arbitrary process.
Unilag Governing Council had in a statement released by its Registrar and Secretary, Oladejo Azeez Esq., entitled: “Notice to the general public on the removal of the Vice-Chancellor of Unilag”, said he was sacked “based on the investigation of serious acts of wrongdoing, gross misconduct, financial recklessness and abuse of office”.
But the Secretary-General of CVCUN, Prof. Yakubu Aboki Ochefu, told journalists in Abuja on Friday that the abrupt sacking of Ogundipe did not follow due process.
The CVCUN Secretary-General while speaking on the appointment of a new Vice-Chancellor, said the appointment will pose another problem to the university.
He further explained that the extant laws of the University state that if a Vice-Chancellor is removed, one of the deputies should be appointed to act, Unilag has three Deputy Vice-Chancellors, none of them was appointed to act and then somebody else entirely was appointed.
Ochefu spoke on the Governing Council’s position and the Vice Chancellor’s claims, he said that the situation presently favoured the University Senate which is seeking procedural process.
Ochefu further decried the situation as he described it as unhealthy for a University of such calibre or any other University in Nigeria.
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