New Telegraph

Race for UI VC hots up

˜ASUU: Selection process to be free, fair, transparent
˜SSANU: VC to sustain varsity’s excellence, enhance workers’ welfare

The race for the University of Ibadan (UI) Vice-Chancellorship post, which was announced few weeks ago, is already gathering momentum.
The authorities of the Nigeria’s premier university are searching for a new Vice-Chancellor that will succeed Prof. Idowu Abel Olayinka, whose five-year single term expires on December 1, this year, as the 12th substantive Vice-Chancellor of the institution.

No fewer than seven renowned scholars from the university had already indicated interest to jostle for the plump job in the 72-year-old ivory tower.
According to stakeholders, the candidate, who emerged after the selection process, should be able uphold the tenets of the institution, sustain its vision, reposition and transform the ivory tower as a 21st Century institution of academic excellence of global reckoning.

Some critical stakeholders, comprising the various workers’ unions, members of the university community, as well as the students, however, called for transparent process on the part of the Selection Committee, but insisted that whoever emerges as the next Vice-Chancellor should be a torch-bearer, and a scholar of integrity who should be able to uphold the tenets of the university for high standard, and conduct its affairs in line with the 21st Century needs.

With the vision “to be a world-class institution for academic excellence geared towards meeting societal needs,” and mission “to expand the frontiers of knowledge through provision of excellent conditions for learning and research,” the university is set to create excellent academic and research environment for effective teaching, learning and researching and to make it a world class university, through the use of the instrumentality of research, intelligence gathering and community synergy to curb cultism and other social ills on campus.

The next Vice-Chancellor, the stakeholders based on their expectations, said should be ready to intenalise the culture of academic excellence, discipline and long standing standard of the university.

But, given the ongoing industrial action by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Universities (NASU) of the institution, there are indications that the strike might slowed down the momentum of the process of obtaining and submitting application forms by interested candidates, which is still on till July 9.

Despite this, the university chapter of ASUU, however, called on the Selection Committee to ensure transparent process that its outcome would bring in a cosmopolitan scholar of international repute, high academic standing, integrity and commitment to re-energise the focus of the ivory tower.

While reacting to the process, the ASUU-UI Chairman, Prof. Ayo Akinwole, who recalled that though union is currently on strike, said: “We are on industrial action presently and so there is little that can be talked about the process, what we can do now is to pray that the process will be free and fair, while whoever emerges at the end will do well for the collective interest of our university.

The ASUU leader, who reiterated that whichever candidate that emerged as the next Vice-Chancellor is not answerable to the union, but to his employer and the public, however, pointed out that the union’s expectations is that he or she should live above board and consolidate on the standard of the university.

Akinwole further added: “Our expectation is that he or she should take the institution to the next level in academic and physical development in line with the aspirations of its founding fathers, as well as improve on whatever achievements he met on ground.

“Nevertheless, we are strongly in expectation that the next Vice-Chancellor must improve the welfare of staff and students, and also bolster the age-long corporate image of the institution.
“As critical stakeholder and keen observer of the process, we shall ensure that whoever emerges will be properly monitored to guarantee that the rights and welfare of workers, students and other members of the university community are not trampled upon. And, these are our expectations.”

Meanwhile, the university chapter of SSANU told New Telegraph that “the tenure of the outgoing Vice-Chancellor had been eventful; it added that Prof. Olayinka has done his bit.
This was as the Chairman of the union, Comrade Wale Akinremi, noted that the fact must be acknowledged that University of Ibadan is more a complex system in terms of governance than any other tertiary institution in the country.

The SSANU chair, who said that the association had several unresolved issues with the outgoing Vice-Chancellor, noted: “As a union leader, I can attest to the fact that we still have a lot of axe to grind with his administration. I can say authoritatively that we are not satisfied with the attention and welfare we received from the outgoing Vice-Chancellor. Though, many factors could be attributed to that, the bottom line is that for the non-teaching members of staff, we were treated with disdain by the Prof. Olayinka’s administration.

“We have to fight all the times to force management to meet our demands such as staff promotions; for our legitimate allowances to be paid, and for again the UI International Staff School teachers were treated like third class citizens under Prof. Olayinka, even after a court judgement had reinstated them.

“More worrisome is that our security members of staff have been dying in droves for lack of annual leave, even while study leave became practically impossible for the non-teaching staff.”
Akinremi, who regretted that the relationship between the Vice-Chancellor and the non-teaching members of staff had broken down completely, irretrievably, wondered also that hardly would a non-teaching member of staff returned from the SDC (Staff Disciplinary Committee) unscathed.

On the union’s expectations from the incoming Vice-Chancellor, SSANU insisted that the next Vice-Chancellor should a leader that will belong to all members of the community and not a particular group of workers.

He said: “We expect the next Vice-Chancellor to be a good listener. We need a Vice-Chancellor who is going to assure the non-teaching staff that we are all critical stakeholders in the university project. He or she must be able to motivate the workers. In fact, we pray to have a charismatic leader, who is not going to wait for crisis to loom before engaging the workers positively.

“Ultimately, we need a Vice-Chancellor, who is not going to be satisfied with the current rating of University of Ibadan as the best in Nigeria, but someone that will put every ingredient into making the ivory tower to become the best in Africa and compete favourably with the best in the global community.”
To qualify for the selection, the University Registrar, Olubunmi Faluyi, said the would-be candidates are expected, among other things, possess a good university education and should be a proven, successful manager of human and material resources.

He stated in a release signed by him: “In accordance with the provisions of the Universities (Miscellaneous Provisions) Decree No. 11 of 1993 (as Amended by Decree No. 25 of 1996) and by the Universities (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1993 (Amendment) Act 2003 and Act 2012, the Governing Council of the University of Ibadan wishes to commence

the process of filling the vacancy.
“Specifically, the candidate shall be expected to: be a highly distinguished scholar of the rank of Professor, with a minimum of 10-year experience on that level and demonstrate ability to provide academic and administrative leadership for such a well-established institution; be a person of proven integrity; be not more than 65 years old as at the date of possible assumption of duty on December 1, 2020; command the respect of the national and international academic communities through his or her track record; strengthen the bridges between staff, students and other members of the university community; be a person with a clear vision for the development of the university enjoy excellent physical and mental health; and attract the much-needed funds into the university.”
The seven candidates that had already indicated interest in the coveted position are the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Admin), Prof. Kayode Oyebode Adebowale of the Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science; former Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic), Prof. Adeyinka Abideen Aderinto; former Dean, Faculty of Arts, Prof. Remi Raji-Oyelade of the Department of English; former Dean, Faculty of Law, Prof. Oluyemisi Adefunke Bamgbose, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN); Prof. George Olusegun Ademowo of the Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutic, Faculty of Basic Medical Science Provost of College of Medicine, Prof. Emiola Oluwabunmi Olapade-Olaopa; and the immediate past Chief Medical Director (CMD), University College Hospital (UCH), Prof. Temitope Alonge.

Aderinto, a Professor of Sociology and the immediate past Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) of the university, is currently the Head of Department of Sociology, and former Dean of Post Graduate (PG) School.

During his tenure as the DVC Academic, Aderinto, also a former Director of Special Duties to the immediate past Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Isaac Adewole, was said to midwife the religious crisis involving the management of the ISI School and some Muslim parents who insisted that their children should be allowed to wear Hijab to school.
Despite being a Muslim, he stood on the side of the university by refusing to yield to the agitation of the Muslim parents.

Aderinto, an alumnus of the university, graduated in 1988 with Bachelor of Science Degree in Sociology with Second Class Upper Division.
As the best graduating student in the Sociology Department, Prof. Aderinto is a member of several professional associations, including the International Sociological Association; the Council for the Development of Social Research in Africa, Dakar, Senegal; African Sociological Association; Union of African Population Studie; the Nigeria Anthropological and Sociological Association, and the South African Sociological Association, among many others.

Meanwhile, Prof. Kayode Adebowale, 58, a Professor of Industrial Chemistry is the current Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Administration) of the university. A former Dean of the Post Graduate (PG) School, he began his working career at the university as a Graduate Assistant between 1987 and 1991.

He was appointed Lecturer II at the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA) in October 1991, where he was promoted to Lecturer I and Senior Lecturer in 1994 and 1997 respectively, before he transferred his service to the University of Ibadan in February 1999 as a Senior Lecturer. He was subsequently elevated to a Reader in 2003 and Professor in October 2006.

Adebowale has held several administrative positions and served on several Committees of the university. These include Examinations Officer, Department of Chemistry (2003-2005); Postgraduate Coordinator, Department of Chemistry (2000-2002); Sub-Dean (Postgraduate) of Faculty of Science (2002-2004); Dean, Faculty of Science (2009-2011); Member, Committee of Provosts and Deans (2009-2011); Member Committee on the Appointment of Emeritus Professors (2012 to date).

He was Convener, Investigative Panel on the Determination of the Class of Degree of two students in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Technology in 2013, and the Director, Special Duties, Office of the Vice-Chancellor between 2015 and 2016.

Emiola Olapade-Olaopa, a Professor of Surgery, and an alumnus of the university, is the current Provost of College of Medicine, University of Ibadan.
His academic and professional careers span Urology, Molecular Biology, Medical Education and Health Systems Research and Development.

The President of the African Medical Schools Association (AMSA), Olapade-Olaopa, has contributed to several initiatives nationally and internationally.
In the international arena, Prof. Olapade-Olaopa is a member of the WHO-AFRO Advisory Committee on Health Research Development, and has been the Chair of the Surgery Final Examination of the University of Buea, Cameroon since 2011; a former member of the Expert Advisory Committee on the Sub-Saharan African Medical Schools Survey, and an Adviser to the Coordinating Centre of the Medical Education Partnership Initiative (for Sub-Saharan Africa) of the United States Government and the MEDUNAM II Project of the Norwegian Government at the University of Namibia.

Prof. Remi Raji, a Professor of English and African Literatures and Creative Writing, was born in 1961.
A Nigerian poet, writing in English, his poems have been widely read in Africa, Europe and America, while in 2005, he served as the Guest Writer to the City of Stockholm, Sweden; and has scholarly essays published in reputable journals such as in the Research in African Literatures and African Literature Today.

He is a Salzburg Fellow and Visiting Professor and writer to a number of institutions, including the Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville, the Universities of California at Riverside and Irvine, University of Cape Town, South Africa, and Cambridge University, UK.

Raji has also served in several administrative capacities, which culminated in his appointment as the Head of the Department of English in 2011, and the Dean of the Faculty of Arts of the university.

Bamgbose, the only female among them is a Professor of Criminal Law and Criminology, and the first female Professor of Law in Nigeria to be conferred with the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria.

Born in 1961, she is graduate of the University of Lagos (UNILAG), where she obtained her LLB Degree, and was called to the Nigerian Bar in 1984. She obtained her Master of Laws Degree also from the University of Lagos in 1990, and became a Professor of Law in 2003.

Prof. Bamgbose, who was elevated to the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria in 2018, joined the Faculty of Law, University of Ibadan as an Assistant Lecturer in 1987, and rose through the ranks to become a Professor of Law in the institution.

She served as Dean of Faculty of Law between 2009 and 2014; the pioneer female Head of Department in the Faculty of Law for two terms between 1997 and 2003. She was also the Sub-Dean, Faculty of Law; an Assistant Hall Warden and Acting Warden for Queen Elizabeth II Hall, and currently the Director of the Women’s Law Clinic (a specialised law clinic) at the institution’s Faculty of Law.

Prof. Bamgbose is an internal member of the Governing Council of the University of Ibadan.
Sixty-One-year-old Alonge, a Professor of Orthopaedic and Trauma Surgery, is the immediate past Chief Medical Director of the University College Hospital (UCH), where he served for eight years.
Born at Oka Akoko, Ondo State in 1959, Alonge, an alumnus of the University of Ibadan is a member of the Oyo State Task Force on COVID-19. He graduated from the College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, where he obtained his Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery Degree (MBBS) in 1983.

A Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (FRCS) Edinburgh; and Fellow, West African College of Surgeon, FWACS (Orthopaedics and Trauma) in April 1994, he returned to Nigeria in 1995 on completing his Post Graduate Training in Orthopaedics and Trauma Surgery in England.

Prof. Alonge formulated the Ceftriaxone-Polymethyl Methacrylate Antibiotic Beads and initiated the treatment of chronic bone infection with the Belfast technique in Nigeria as well as the concept of State Emergency Medical Services at a two-day workshop, which was conduct at the British Council in 1996 and since been adopted by many states of the federation.
Adeomowo, a Professor of Pharmacology & Therapeutics; and a Research Consultant to The Panacea Project is an alumnus of the University of Ibadan, where he graduated in June 1983 with MBBS.
He was appointed a Junior Research Fellow in 1989 at the Institute for Advanced Medical Research and Training (IAMRAT) University of Ibadan, College of Medicine and joint appointment with the Department of Pharmacology & Therapeutics.

Born in 1964, Ademowo a Nigerian Biomedical Researcher, is a Fellow of Alexander Von Humboldt Foundation (1994); Travel Fellowship, University Ibadan (1995); Scholar, Volkswagen Foundation, Germany (1997); Fellow Royal Society Tropical Medicine and Hygiene; Member Institute Biomedical Sciences, New York Academy of Sciences.

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