UNILAG Senate Visits President Buhari, Demands Reinstatement Of The Purpoted Sacked VC

The Senate of the University of Lagos (UNILAG) has described as illegal, the purported removal of Professor Oluwatoyin Ogundipe from office as Vice-Chancellor of the institution by the Governing Council, saying the laid down procedures were not followed.

It also rejected the appointment of Professor Theophilus Soyombo as acting Vice-Chancellor while it passed vote-of-no confidence in the governing council.

The University Senate through Professor Chioma Agomo, a former Dean of Law made this known in a chat with Newsmen when she led a delegation of the Unilag Senate on a courtesy call on President Muhammadu Buhari in the Villa, Abuja.

Professor Agomo stated that since President Buhari is a visitor to the University, they decided to let him know about the issue and the Senate’s resolution, having gone to appropriate quarters.

The Governing Council of the University led by Dr Wale Babalakin on 12th August, 2020, had at an emergency meeting which removed Professor Ogundipe from office as VC with immediate effect, accusing him of wrongdoing, gross misconduct, financial recklessness and abuse of office.

Professor Agomo said the University of Lagos Senate had conveyed an emergency meeting, which was attended by 91 professors regarding the issue.

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She stated; “We are not saying that the council has no right to remove Professor Ogundipe, no, what we are saying is that due process has not been followed. There is a laid down procedure in the extant laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria namely the Universities Miscellaneous Provisions Act of 2003. It applies to all federal universities and it provides for removal of a Vice Chancellor if there is any need to, on the basis of misconduct… The procedures are there, it should be a joint committee of Council and Senate. This has not been done in this case and so we are saying it cannot stand.

“The rule of law has been trampled underground. We are talking about rule of law of fairness of justice not just for University of Lagos but for the entire university system and the entire nation because rule of law is the fundamental of our society and the Constitution of the Federal republic of Nigeria provides for that.

The former Dean said; “Following the abuse of rule of law, UNILAG Senate maintains that it has lost confidence in the governing council. First of all, the senate affirmed its confidence in the substantive Vice Chancellor, Professor Oluwatoye Ogundepi and the loss of confidence they have in the present council of the university of Lagos led by Dr Wale Babalakin. You cannot by any stretch of your imagination convoluted interpretation of the constitution say that you have fulfilled the requirement of the law when the provisions are so clear.’’

She stated that the team went to the Natioal Universities Commission of Nigeria, NUC and dropped a letter concerning the Senate’s resolution on the issue which was duly acknowledged.

The Senate delegation maintained that they were not in anyway against the removal of the ousted Vice Chancellor but demands that due process be followed.

Professor Chioma Agomo stressed that whatever affects UNILAG, affect all Federal Universities, hence the need to rescind the unlawful decision.

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