BREAKING: Plans to Appoint 3rd DVC in ABU: ASUU Prepares for Showdown with VC

By Waziri Isa Adam

The Ahmadu Bello University branch of Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), has asked the Institution’s Vice Chancellor, Professor Kabiru Bala, to shelve his unpopular and seeming ill-motivated plans to appoint a third Deputy Vice Chancellor for the University, an attempt his Predecessor, Professor Ibrahim Garba, once made, but was shot down by the Institution’s late Pro-chancellor and Chairman of Governing Council, Malam Adamu Fika, who was Kabiru Bala’s benefactor.

The Union, in a letter, titled, ‘Re: Election of Third Deputy Vice Chancellor’, dated 27th March, 2024, jointly signed by the union’s Chairman, Comrade Haruna M. Jibril and Secretary, Comrade Hassan Bala, addressed to the Chairman of the University’s Senate, who is the Vice Chancellor, said, “we write on behalf of members of Academic Staff Union of Universities, Ahmadu Bello University Zaria, to demand a halt in the election of a third Deputy Vice Chancellor scheduled for today – (Thursday, 28th, March), on the floor of the senate”

” It is our position that the creation of the Office of the Third Deputy Vice Chancellor in the absence of a Governing Council violates the laws to which Ahmadu Bello University is subject. For the avoidance of doubt, the Universities (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1993, and the Universities (Miscellaneous Provisions) (Amendment) Act, 2003, confer the power to create the Office of a Third Deputy Vice Chancellor solely on the Council of a University, section 2AAA of the Universities (Miscellaneous Provisions)(Amendment) Act, 2003, further provides that, ‘the powers of the Council shall be exercised, as in the Law and statutes of each University and to that extent, establishment circulators that are inconsistent with the laws shall not apply to the Universities”, the Union highlighted.

“From the foregoing, the establishment of the Office of a Third Deputy Vice Chancellor and the Plan to elect an individual into the office on the floor of the Senate, undermines ‘Autonomy and Independence’ guaranteed by section 2AAA of the Universities (Miscellaneous Provisions)(Amendment) Act, 2003”, the Union stressed.

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The Union therefore called on the Vice to immediately halt his planned and illegal election of the Third Deputy Vice Chancellor, which it considers as a clear violation of the laws of the university as clearly quoted above.

It would be recalled that the Vice Chancellor muted the same idea and presented it to the then Council, before the late Chair became bedridden and incapacitated, but was rejected. The University Administration has now gone behind to secure a black market approval from the Minister of Education, Professor Tahir Mamman, on behalf of a non existent Council. Usually, the Minister is contacted on urgent matters that cannot wait for full Council. This is now seen by a section of the University community as an attempt to appoint one of his cronies so he may increase the number of Council members in preparation for the voting of his anointed candidate as his successor, later this year.