Gbenro Adesina
The Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu, has inaugurated the Special Visitation Panel to the University of Lagos set up by the Federal Government to look into the crisis surrounding the removal of the institution’s Vice Chancellor, Professor Oluwatoyin Ogundipe.
While inaugurating the committee in Abuja, Adamu said the panel is expected to proffer solution to the lingering governance issues in the institution.
He explained that over the past year the Ministry has been inundated with complaints from management and the governing council of the University of Lagos on allegations of financial infractions and breach of responsibilities.
He said, “The face-off lingered unabated, in spite of several interventions by the leadership of the Federal Ministry of Education, stakeholders and the National Universities Commission, eventually leading to the removal of Professor Oluwatoyin Ogundipe as Vice-Chancellor by the University Governing Council during its meeting of Wednesday, 12th August 2020. The Council thereafter appointed an acting Vice-Chancellor to fill the void”.
Adamu noted that the decision of the Council instead of stabilising the University of Lagos only managed to open up a plethora of accusations and counter-accusations.
He stated that “due process was alleged not to have been followed in the removal and appointment of the Vice-Chancellor and the acting Vice-Chancellor respectively. This led to widespread protests, outright rejection and lack of acceptability of the acting Vice-Chancellor by the university community”.
Adamu stressed that the President and Visitor to the University after due consideration of the report of the crisis constituted a seven-man special Visitation Panel to look into the crisis in the University and submit recommendations towards repositioning the institution to its pride of place.
He pointed out that the Chairman and members of the panel were carefully selected in recognition of their integrity, track records and antecedents in University management and leadership.
Chairman of the Presidential Visitation Panel, Professor Tukur Sa’ad affirmed the commitment of members to work diligently in restoring lasting peace in the University.
Other members of the committee are: Barrister Victor Onuoha, Professor Ikenna Onyido, Professor Ekanem Braide, Professor Adamu K. Usman and Chief Jimoh Bankole, while Barrister Grace Ekanem, serves as Secretary.
The Special Visitation Panel has two weeks to submit its report.
