The House of Representatives Committee on University Education has invited Minister of Education, Dr. Morufu Alausa, to address allegations of indiscriminate sacking of university vice chancellors and dissolution of governing councils.
The committee's chairman, Rep. Abubakar Fulata, announced the invitation, citing a series of petitions received against the minister.
The committee claims that Alausa was involved in the dissolution of governing councils and removal of substantive vice chancellors in several universities, including Alvan Ikoku Federal University of Education, Nnamdi Azikwe University, and the University of Nigeria, Nsukka.
Fulata expressed concerns that the unstable leadership in the education sector could lead to unnecessary disharmony among university officials and potentially ruin the tenure and stability of the education system.
Prof. Abubakar Kari, representing aggrieved staffers of the University of Abuja, told the committee that the sacking of Prof. Aisha Maikudi as VC and dissolution of the council were done without following due process.
Kari, who spoke on a petition tagged “Unwarranted Removal of Prof. Aisha Maikudi as Vice Chancellor and Dissolution of Governing Council of University of Abuja”, decried the incident.
He said that Air Vice Marshal Ismaila Kaita (rtd) was also disengaged as chairman of the council while Sen. Lanre Tejuoso was appointed as the governing council and Prof. Patricia Lar, the acting vice chancellor.
According to Kari, the act was against the provisions of the Universities Miscellaneous Provisions Amendment Act 2003, which clearly states how and why VC should be removed.
He explained that only the governing council of a university has the power to remove a vice chancellor. He appealed to the legislators to intervene in order to immediately restore Maikudi to her position as well as to members of the council to serve their terms as elected representatives of the University Senate and Congregation.
In their separate presentations, Maikudi and Kaita told the committee that to date, they had not received any letter regarding their disengagement.
