The Governing Council of the University of Ibadan is set to hold an online meeting, specifically on the 18th of May, in a bid to set in motion, processes for the appointment of the Institution’s next Vice Chancellor.

In a statement signed by the Registrar, Mrs. Olubunmi Faluyi, the meeting became imperative because the five-year tenure of the incumbent Vice Chancellor, Professor Abel Idowu Olayinka, would expire on the 30th of November, 2020.

According to the statement, the meeting is therefore, in accordance with the Universities Autonomy Act of 2003, which vests the power to appoint a Vice Chancellor on the institution’s Governing Council, provided that the visitor to the University, in this case, President Muhammadu Buhari GCFR, is duly informed after the appointment.


Adnair
However, this announcement of the commencement of the electoral process, may be hampered by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the strike embarked upon by members of the Acacdemic Staff Union of Universitis (ASUU), whose members have specifically frowned at the commencement of such exercise, “at a time like this”.

A source, who pleaded anonymity, explained to OYOINSIGHT.COM that the meeting is a ploy by the Vice Chancellor “to force or rush a meeting via Zoom (an online meeting platform), when he cannot get other things done via the same online platform”.

The source stressed that “this is the beginning of a plan (by the VC) to force his own agenda on the system he has not led well for the past 5 years”.

Unfortunately for the VC, the source added, “members of ASUU who are in the Varsity’s Council, are under drective of the National Union not to attend any meetings, whether online or not.”

Findings by OYOINSIGHT.COM also revealed that Section 2 of the Guidelines of the ongoing ASUU strike forbids any member to attend any meeting, whether physical or online.

The section reads, “Members are further reminded that the current strike is indefinite, total and comprehensive. No teaching, no examination and no attendance of statutory meetings (whether physical or electronic) of any kind (Senate, Council, College, Faculty/Departmental Boards, Committees, etc).”

The source further explained that this same Management, now calling for an online meeting for the purposes of kick-starting processes for the appointment of a new VC, had previously prevented two different online meetings on account of the Coronavirus pandemic.

The first, according to the source, was an online international conference which was cancelled, and the Dean told that was so because of the pandemic and ASUU strike.

Similarly, the source stated that a zoom meeting between ASUU members in the institution was stopped by the VC because of COVID-19.

It is therefore funny, that the same VC who postponed both programmes, is now the one calling for another meeting.