Controversial VC Appointment Forces Tinubu To Sack UNIZIK Governing Council

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has reportedly approved the dissolution of the Governing Council of the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, popularly known as UNIZIK.

Naija News reports that Tinubu dissolved the council over the controversial appointment of Bernard Odoh as the new vice-chancellor of the university.

Odoh, a professor, emerged as the seventh substantive vice-chancellor of the university on 29 October.

According to Premium Times, Odoh’s academic profile and his appointment as vice-chancellor of UNIZIK were riddled with controversies.

For instance, Odoh had, in his profile published on the university’s website, indicated that he served as a visiting professor at the Federal University, Gusau (FUGUS), Zamfara State, between July 2015 and October 2017.

But both FUGUS and the university’s chapter of Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), refuted Odoh’s claims in separate letters in response to enquiries about his academic profile.

Meanwhile, before Mr Odoh’s emergence as vice-chancellor, the UNIZIK’s chapter of ASUU and the institution’s chapter of the Medical and Dental Consultants Association of Nigeria had alleged irregularities in both the announcement of vacancy and recruitment process.

Three days after the appointment of Mr. Odoh as Vice-Chancellor of Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK), the Federal Ministry of Education invalidated the decision in a memo dated 1 November 2024.

The ministry accused the university’s Governing Council, chaired by Greg Mbadiwe, of making the appointment without the involvement of ministry representatives, internal council members, and other stakeholders.

In response, the university, through its Registrar and Secretary to Council, R.I. Nwokike, defended the appointment, asserting that the council adhered strictly to a valid court judgment mandating it to exercise its statutory authority in appointing the vice-chancellor.

Odoh, in his first public reaction last Friday, argued that the Ministry of Education lacked the authority to nullify his appointment.

Speaking at a press conference in Awka through his spokesperson, Charles Otu, he highlighted his academic credentials, stating that he was appointed as a visiting professor at the Federal University Gusau (FUGUS) in 2014 and was later promoted to full professor of applied geophysics in 2015.

However, on Monday, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) condemned the appointments of Odoh as Vice-Chancellor and Rosemary Nwokike as Registrar of UNIZIK.

The union described the appointments as illegal and a mockery of the university system.

According to ASUU National President, Professor Emmanuel Osoedeke, the appointments violated established procedures, including advertisement, search processes, shortlisting, and selection criteria.

In a new twist, President Bola Tinubu has reportedly approved the dismissal of UNIZIK’s Governing Council members.

Sources revealed to Premium Times that the Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, has received presidential approval to announce the sack, which is expected to be made public as early as Wednesday.

As of the time of this report, it remains unclear whether Mr. Odoh will retain his position as Vice-Chancellor following the dismissal of the Governing Council that appointed him.