An Ivory Tower Unhinged by Undue Influence
The protracted leadership brouhaha inflicted by unwarranted government intervention at the beleaguered University of Abuja has gone full circle. What purportedly aimed to douse internal rumblings over the appointment of its 7th substantive Vice-Chancellor, the precipitated, ill-informed, and unlawful premature dissolution of the University’s 10th Governing Council, and the removal of the newly appointed helmswoman, Professor Aisha Sani Maikudi, by the Tinubu Administration has now turned into a fiasco. The raging leadership crisis has not only defied all the knee-jerkdeployment of imposed interim administrations and a brand-new transition process, but it is also evident that the solution can only be found in removing the foundation of the quagmireby ‘restoring the rejected stone’.
At the root of the intractable leadership crisis is the abject failure of the Federal Government and its officials, particularly the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, and the successive governing authorities of the University, including the two successively imposed acting Vice-Chancellors (Professors Manko Lar and Mathew Adamu) and the current Governing Council led by Senator Lanre Tejuoso, to recognise and comply with the governing laws of the Institution. Instead of leveraging the existing rules, the powers that be have continuously relied on impunity, resulting in the current leadership cul-de-sac at the University of Abuja. So far, all actions of the constituted authorities have only seemed to introduce new twists and turns to the deepening saga.
Panic Reaction as a New Trigger
The sudden gangster-like takeover of office at the University by the announced incoming 8th substantive Vice-Chancellor, Professor Hakeem Babatunde Fawehinmi, on Thursday, 11th December 2025, two months earlier than his celebrated assumption date of 10th February 2026, has not only set tongues wagging nationwide but has also ominously opened a new chapter in the leadership crisis afflicting the institution. Professor Fawehinmi not only gate-crashed and disrupted a Governing Council meeting to assume office at the University of Abuja, but he was also yet to hand over the private university he was managing in Abia state at the time.
What informed the desperate steps taken by the new helmsman and his backers was the brewing crisis over specific questions being raised over his ineligibility for the position. Following the fact that he does not possess a requisite doctorate (PhD), which is a cardinal requirement for becoming a vice-chancellor at the University, various stakeholders have commenced moves towards revisiting the last selection process with a view to disqualifying Professor Fawehinmi from the position. In addition to the media exposure of the man’s non-qualification for the job, a court injunction was also allegedly obtained which Professor Fawehinmi reportedly rushed to pre-empt by hurriedly assuming the office two months ahead of time conveyed in his letter of appointment, as announced to the world by the Governing Council.
However, Professor Fawehinmi’s presence can only escalate the leadership tussle at the University with attendant repercussions. This is because his eligibility predicament has thrown up a universal consensus within the university community that he is unfit to lead the University. With aboutthree hundred professors, it is evident that a person without a requisite doctorate cannot be accepted to lead the institution, moving forward. The only area of divergence is on the way forward after Professor Fawehinmi’s disqualification, for which there are three distinct groups.
Based on the current balance of forces, the most vocal minority group is rooting for Fawehinmi to be replaced by one of the other two candidates (preferably the number two) recommended by the Selection Board and considered by the Council. The second vocal group is demanding a fresh selection process altogether, while the third group, constituting the silent majority, is expecting the reinstatement of Professor Aisha Maikudi to atone for the original grossinjustice meted against her by the government.
Given the prevailing scenario, it would appear that the rushed assumption of office by the fourth vice-chancellor this year alone cannot resolve the underlying leadership issues at the University of Abuja. Instead, it has only succeeded in opening a new chapter of an ugly saga that should not have been unleashed in the first place.
An Avoidable Leadership Mess
It is now a universal consensus that the lingering leadership crisis at the University of Abuja is uncalled-for, messy, and regrettable. It should not have happened in the first placebecause the government had no ground or basis to orchestrate it. Not in law, administrative precedence, or due process. It has become such a monumental national embarrassment that the institution has remained in the news for all the wrong reasons throughout 2025. And without the authorities making amends and allowing the institution to ‘breathe fresh air’, it has no chance of courting any positive news soon.
It should be recalled that in early February this year, the Tinubu Presidency announced the sudden dissolution of the Governing Council and the removal of Professor Aisha Maikudi. This was in response to the agitations by some internal professors who lost out in the race for the vice-chancellor position. At the same time, the government announced similar leadership changes with varying degrees in some other universities. However, the actions taken at the University of Abuja have remained unwarranted and unexplained by the government to date.
The government immediately replaced the dislodged governing authorities with Senator Lanre Tejuoso as the new Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council, and Professor Patricia Manko Lar from the University of Jos as an acting Vice-Chancellor for a term of six months. Apart from the illegal ouster of the former officials, Senator Tejuoso also strangely served for a long period as a one-man Council.
At the expiration of Professor Lar’s illegal tenure, the government appointed the immediate past acting Vice-Chancellor, Professor Mathew Adamu, from the Joseph Sarwuan University of Agriculture, Makurdi, for a term of three months. He was serving an extended tenure of three additional months granted by the Governing Council, which further domesticated the initial unwholesome infractions by the government, before it was abruptly cut short by Professor Fawehinmi’s sudden assumption of office.
Indeed, following the blatant erosion of the university’s autonomy and breaches of existing rules, the corporate integrity, internal cohesion, and administrative processes and governance ethos of the institution have been bastardised and scandalised on the altar of political expediency and personal idiosyncrasies of those running the system.
Professor Manko Lar’s Calamitous Reign
It is beyond doubt that the most disastrous fallout of the executive overreach by the Tinubu Presidency has remained the advent of Professor Patricia Manko Lar as the acting Vice-Chancellor of the University of Abuja from 10th February to 09th August 2025. Members of the university community would not forget in a hurry, not only the impunity of her appointment outside the confines of the law and due process, but also her sheer audacity to remake the university administration through some alien and uncommon steps.Indeed, throughout her 6-month reign, she acted as if she wereout to earn the appellation of a ‘sole administrator’.
Although she was given the singular mandate by the government to facilitate the appointment of a new substantive Vice-Chancellor, Professor Lar opted to join the fray of internal politicking, while lacking the statesmanship required of a presumed peacemaker. Buoyed by the arrogance of an unexpected ‘mint fresh power’ but limited by inexperience and primordial-driven naivety, Professor Lar infamously left the University worse than she met it.
Under the 6-month tenure of Professor Lar, the University of Abuja witnessed, among other things:
Furthermore, to complicate matters for herself, Professor Manko Lar later played to the gallery by joining the race to emerge as the next substantive vice-chancellor, even when her letter of appointment categorically barred her from doing so. Nonetheless, she was not even shortlisted for an interview by the Council after submitting her application. In the end, she left the University of Abuja a complete flop, neither able to execute her given mandate nor avoid deepening the crisis in the institution.
Failed Transition, Professor Adamu’s Inglorious Exit
Following the expiration of Professor Manko Lar’s six-month tenure and her spectacular failure to restore sanity at the University, Professor Mathew Adamu was packaged and once more imposed to facilitate the appointment of a new substantive vice-chancellor. Professor Adamu’s direct appointment by the government not only unlawfully undermined the laid-down process, but it also whimsicallyusurped the powers of the University Senate and the Governing Council, all of which were in place at the time of the appointment. He was given three months to complete the new transition process, which has now turned out to be flawed, with a new substantive vice-chancellor lacking the requisite requirements for the position. However, it would appear that the process was doomed to fail from the start.
First, the National Assembly, through its relevant committees, directed the university authorities to halt the selection process for appointing a new vice-chancellor until the completion of its oversight on the unlawful removal of Professor Aisha Maikudi from office. Acting on a petition by concerned staff from the University, the House of Representatives Committee on University Education had directed the Governing Council to halt the process pending conclusion of its investigation intothe matter. Similarly, the Senate Committee on Tertiary Education and TETFund had directed the Minister of Education to suspend the selection process at the University.
The university authorities may have disregarded the National Assembly’s directives, but they will now rue their indiscretion since the process has failed to resolve the leadership issues at the University. If anything, the appointment of Professor Fawehinmi with his questionable academic credentials has only opened a new chapter in the university’s deepening generalised crisis of leadership and governance.
Secondly, the conduct of the Governing Council and some of its members was tainted by allegations of financial inducement, blackmail, and betrayal. These concerns surfaced when certain self styled senior professors and prominent members of the infamous G44 within the University Senate, who had actively opposed the emergence of Professor Aisha Maikudi, failed to make the interview shortlist. Their exclusion reportedly prompted the Council Chairman, Senator Tejuoso, to convene a meeting with the aggrieved candidates in an effort to pacify them. This intervention heightened tensions on campus and raised serious questions as to why the authorities deemed it necessary to placate non shortlisted candidates to forestall potential unrest. Notably, no such courtesy or opportunity was ever extended to Professor Maikudi, not even to hear her own side of the story!
Nevertheless, a couple of the ten shortlisted candidates were not interviewed due to an alleged lack of security clearance. During the interview, the three internal professors who attended were reportedly subjected to severe, uncouth harassment by the Senate representatives on the Joint Council and Senate Selection Board. It was a spectacle, unbefitting of such a high-profile engagement process, which is usuallymarked by a cerebral approach and thoroughbred professionalism.
Thirdly, and more crucially, the flawed process culminated in the appointment of an academically unfit candidate for the job. To worsen matters, which further underscored the flawed process, the candidate who emerged second behind Professor Fawehinmi among the three names recommended for consideration and appointment by the Council is equally doomed and unfit to occupy the office. It is an open secret that the second-ranked candidate, Professor Bernard Matur, absconded from the University of Abuja years ago, after being indicted by several investigative and disciplinary committees. How, with his crippling moral baggage and dwarfed stature, he was shortlisted, interviewed, and even emerged second-ranked in the selection process has become a subject of intense discourse within the university community. All this has been attributed to external political machinations surrounding the Pro-Chancellor’s 2027 political aspirations and the interests of some national handlers of the ruling partyin the country.
Thus, as it stands today, with the last selection process clearly flawed, the University of Abuja has entered what Nigerians would euphemistically describe as a ‘one-chance’ bus in terms of having a new substantive vice-chancellor. Sensing the determined resolve of alarmed and concerned stakeholders to contest and undo the flawed appointment, the forces behind Professor Fawehinmi immediately propelled him to assume office two months earlier than was initially announced. In consequence, the extended tenure of Professor Adamu was suddenly terminated, forcing his hurried exit from the office in ignominy.
Why is Professor Babatunde Fawehinmi Ineligible?
Professor Babatunde Fawehinmi is a professor of clinical anatomy and biomedical anthropology. He holds a Doctor of Medicine (MD), which is a distinct professional qualification in the medical sciences, not equivalent to a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD). Accordingly, he is not eligible to be appointed as vice-chancellor since he does not possess a Doctor of Philosophy, which is the advertised requirement for the position.
The vice-chancellor is the academic head and chief executive of the university, who must possess the highest qualificationin the system, a PhD. It is a research doctorate with universal application across all academic fields, which provides the holder sufficient recognition and leverage to superintend and manage the university as head. On the other hand, the MD is a professional doctorate restricted to the practice of medicine,not ranking as the highest academic qualification, or equivalent to a PhD in academic and administrative appointments in the system. There is even a landmark ruling by the National Industrial Court of Nigeria supporting this.
Furthermore, by virtue of his academic profile, Professor Fawehinmi properly belongs to the Faculty of Basic Medical Sciences, which constitutes the academic core of the medical school. It is beyond dispute that the terminal and highest qualification in his faculty and in the field of anatomy is the PhD. In this regard, it is legitimate to question why, after obtaining a master’s degree in anatomy, the pastor professorelected to pursue an MD programme rather than the conventional doctoral pathway. Even more concerning is the fact that such an MD programme ought properly to have been undertaken under the auspices of the National Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria, which has the requisite national mandate and reach for postgraduate medical training in clinical sciences, rather than at the University of Port Harcourt, which lacks such outreach.
Given his hybrid academic background and the lack of a PhDin his field of specialisation, Professor Fawehinmi has not met the eligibility criteria to serve as the 8th substantive Vice-Chancellor of the University of Abuja. Not even the University of Port-Harcourt will be inclined to breach the eligibility requirements and appoint him as a vice-chancellor. Hence, the University of Abuja cannot and should not be turned into a dumping ground for vice-chancellors with dwarfed and amputated credentials.
Alausa’s Ego Trip Deepening the Crisis
The protracted crisis at the University is a clear manifestation of the prevailing leadership failure within the Federal Ministry of Education. The facilitation of the unlawful leadership changes announced by the government in February constituted a grave and monumental error of judgment, particularly on the part of the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa. In an era of statutorily guaranteed university autonomy, this amounted to a reckless exercise of executive overreach, one that would not have occurred under a prudent, cerebral, and conscientious supervising ministry. Regrettably, Dr. Alausa’s brazen assertion of power appears to have been compounded by the timidity and neglect of the Minister of State for Education, Professor Suwaiba Sa’ad Ahmed. Consequently, the ongoing impunity and governance distortions at the University of Abuja bear the unmistakable imprimatur of the Ministry.
Contrary to the university’s existing laws, two acting vice-chancellors were appointed by the government from outside in quick succession. When Professor Manko Lar was appointedin February, a Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Administration) was in place, who was disregarded and replaced with so-calledsenior special assistants. Similarly, Professor Mathew Adamu was appointed as an acting Vice-Chancellor in August when the University had a full-fledged Council in place. This consummated the erosion of the university’s autonomy and firmly placed it on a trajectory dictated by the interests of external forces.
Unlike other universities impacted by the government’s unwarranted intervention in February, the University of Abuja was singularly subjected to the premature dissolution of its entire Governing Council, including the internal members duly appointed by the University Senate and Congregation. As with Professor Aisha Maikudi, the removal of these internal council members by the President was unlawful. Paradoxically, the Chairman and external members of the same Council that lawfully selected and appointed Professor Maikudi have since been reappointed by the government to the governing councils of other universities, while she alone has been abandoned.
Once again, the Minister of Education has facilitated the reinstatement of Professor Stella Ngozi Lemchi, Vice Chancellor of Alvan Ikoku Federal University of Education, Owerri, who was removed from office at the same time as Professor Maikudi. Dr. Alausa has publicly stated that an investigative panel was constituted to confirm that the circumstances surrounding Professor Lemchi’s appointment satisfied the applicable eligibility requirements, and it was on this basis that she was reinstated. Curiously, the same Minister has deliberately declined to adopt a similar approach in respect of the removal of Professor Maikudi at the University of Abuja. This selective conduct has inevitably given rise to primordial interpretations, with Dr. Alausa being perceived, with considerable justification, as having treated Professor Maikudi unfairly on account of her regional and ethnic background.
The unfolding saga took another bizarre dimension when, with the apparent backing of Dr. Alausa, the combined forces of an illegal vice-chancellor (Mathew Adamu) and the so-called 11th Governing Council conducted the selection process, which culminated in the appointment of Professor Babatunde Fawehinmi, who is now being challenged for not conforming to the eligibility requirements.
In view of the looming prospects of litigation, coupled with the earlier directives of the National Assembly against the selection process, which were brazenly disregarded by both the Minister of Education and the university authorities, it remains to be seen what further twists the seemingly interminable leadership crisis will assume. One fact, however, is beyond doubt: Dr. Tunji Alausa will not occupy the office of Minister of Education in perpetuity, and the University of Abuja is far too vital and strategically significant as a national institution to be left at the mercy of personal whims.
Resolving the Crisis, Inevitable Making of a Cornerstone
It is now abundantly clear that no meaningful resolution of the protracted crisis is possible without confronting its root cause, namely the unlawful removal of Professor Maikudi from office. This reality has been further accentuated by the manifest injustice of seeing her colleague and fellow victim of executive overreach, Professor Stella Lemchi, reinstated at Alvan Ikoku Federal University of Education, Owerri, by the very authorities that remain unwilling to reinstate her, notwithstanding the fact that Professor Maikudi is two years her senior as a professor. Few impunities and injustices can be more profound or more injurious than this, and it is deeply unfortunate that a country would subject one of its citizens to such treatment.
I am inclined to believe that the University of Abuja is now bearing the consequences of these missteps, which may explain why every effort to resolve the crisis has so far failed. Instead, the predicament continues to deepen, with no resolution in sight. One cannot help but perceive the hand of God in the bungling maneuvers of the Minister of Education and the cascade of errors playing out within our university. As for those who have sought to undermine Professor Maikudi, they have utterly lost their bearings. None of them has been deemed suitable for appointment as either acting or substantive vice-chancellor on the three occasions opportunities arose since February. They now appear focused solely on securing political appointments or other favours from an incoming administration. Unfortunately, the University itself has suffered greatly in the process.
As I write this piece, the university is being governed by an incongruous trio: a presumed vice-chancellor, whose appointment is fraught with statutory irregularities, a disengaged acting vice-chancellor still holding retainership as consultant/associate acting vice chancellor with the University, and a Pro-Chancellor preparing to step down in February 2026 ahead of a senatorial electoral bid in 2027. Only now are the handing-over notes for the purported transition from Professor Adamu to Professor Fawehinmi being compiled by the various Deans, Directors, and Heads of Departments, long after the change allegedly took place on 11th November 2025. The so-called internal members of Council, whose duty is to safeguard the University’s autonomy and integrity, have remained powerless and directionless. Needless to say, all stakeholders should be deeply concerned about the University’s resources, accountability, and overall trajectory, particularly at this critical time.
With all the policy decisions and other actions taken by both the Minister of Education and university authorities so far failing to resolve the lingering crisis, it is time for President Ahmed Bola Tinubu to save the institution from further ruin. After all, the crisis was, in the first instance, instigated at the university in his name. Playing the ostrich by President Tinubu is no longer an option, because the desperately deteriorating situation at the University of Abuja requires a drastic authoritative decision.
In doing so, undoing the injustice meted out to Professor Aisha Maikudi is key and a categorical imperative. She has, indeed, become the ‘stone the builders rejected which has become the cornerstone’. The government has, in several instances, recently reversed itself where necessary. President Tinubu is not known to shy away from decisive action and such intervention, is precisely what the University of Abuja urgently requires.
