Five professors from the University of Ibadan (UI) and one external candidate have formally applied for the position of Vice-Chancellor, setting the stage for the contest to produce the institution’s next substantive leader.
Among the internal contenders are the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Administration), Professors Peter Olamakinde Olapegba of the Department of Psychology; Adeyinka Abideen Aderinto of the Department of Sociology; and Adebola Babatunde Ekanola of the Department of Philosophy, who recently served as the university’s Acting Vice-Chancellor.
Also in the race are Professors Ebenezer Olatunde Farombi of the Faculty of Basic Medical Sciences, and Olayinka Olusola Omigbodun, the first Nigerian female professor of Psychiatry, and the immediate past Provost of the College of Medicine. She is the only female candidate in the contest.
The external contender is Professor James Gbenga Aribisala, a Professor of Water Resources and Environmental Engineering and pioneer Vice-Chancellor of the Federal University of Technology and Environmental Sciences.
Sources familiar with the process disclosed that the university has entered the second phase of the selection exercise, during which qualified academics from other institutions will be invited to participate alongside the current applicants.
Although the process is formally open to external candidates, observers within the institution noted that past vice-chancellor selection exercises have often favoured candidates from within the university system.
The contest is expected to generate considerable interest among stakeholders within and outside the institution as Nigeria’s premier university searches for a successor to lead its affairs in the coming years.
The selection process, which is being closely watched by members of the university community, is expected to intensify in the coming weeks as the institution moves towards appointing a new Vice-Chancellor.
