A new twist has been brought into the race for the next vice chancellor of the University of Ibadan (UI), with the acting Vice Chancellor of the university, Professor Adebola Ekanola, joining the vice chancellorship contest.
Ekanola’s application, according to Nigerian Tribune, is one of 14 others received at the close of the six-week advertisement for the position of vice chancellor of the university, last Thursday.
Though the 13 other applicants are among the 18 candidates that applied during the aborted process, the entry of Ekanola into the race is already unsettling some camps and bringing up some fresh permutations.
The John Odigie-Oyegun-led governing council of the university had, in July, directed that a fresh process towards the appointment of a substantive vice chancellor of the university should commence, while cancelling the previous exercise that was stalled due to crises.
Amid the crises that trailed the end of tenure of the former vice chancellor of the university, Professor Idowu Olayinka, Senate of the university, on November 30, 2020, elected Ekanola, the then deputy vice chancellor
(academics) to serve as acting vice chancellor for a six month tenure, which was extended for another six months ending November
30, 2021.
This time, Ekanola will be contesting with 10 out of the 11 applicants from the institution that also applied for the aborted process.
Only Professor Kolapo Hamzat of the Physiotherapy department of the university is not in the race this time.
Others in the race are Professors Kayode Adebowale of the department of
Chemistry; Abideen Aderinto of Sociology department; Olusegun Ademowo
of the Institute of Medical Research and Training (IMRAT); Ebenezer Farombi of Biochemistry; Temitope Alonge of department of Orthopaedics and Trauma and Oluwabunmi Olapade-Olaopa of the department of Surgery.
Others who have filed applications are Aderemi
Raji-Oyelade of English department; Oladele Layiwola of the Institute of African Studies; Clement Kolawole of the department of Arts and Social Science Education and Babatunde Salako of department of Medicine.
There are three applicants from other universities. They are Professors Mimiko
of the department of political science,
Obafemi Awolowo University; Hakeem Fawehinmi
of the University of Port Harcourt; and Rasaq Kalilu of the department of Fine
and Applied Arts, Ladoke Akintola University of Tech- nology (LAUTECH), Ogbomoso.
As part of the process, the university has invited
nominations for congregation and senate representatives on the search team for the appointment of the next vice chancellor.
Registrar of the university, Olubunmi Faluyi, who
made the call for nominations, in a release, said the call for nomination spans this week’s Monday to Friday, while urging eligible persons to pick up their nomination papers.
This is to be followed by ver- ification of the congregation register, while e-voting for
congregation representatives on search team and special meeting of congregation will be held on September 2.
Also, Senate representatives on the search team for the appointment of the next vice chancellor are expected to be two members of the Senate who are not members of council, one of whom shall be a Professor.
