Ruqayyatu Rufa’i, minister of education, announces the suspension of four core science programmes offered by the University of Abuja in a bid to clean up the rot in the institution

Four core science programmes offered by the University of Abuja, UniAbuja in Nigeria’s capital city, were suspended last week, on the orders of the federal government. It was the first drastic action taken by the federal government to clean up the rot  discovered in the university by the visitation panel it set up to  look into the affairs of the University from 2004-2010. The panel of seven, led by D.A. Guobadia, a professor, also made many other recommendations to correct identified anomalies which they traced to the administrative style of James Adelabu, the present vice chancellor of the university.

The programmes suspended in Uniabuja are Medicine, Veterinary Medicine, Engineering and Agriculture. Ruqayyatu Rufa’i, minister of education, who announced the suspension order made by the federal government, further directed, in a press briefing in Abuja, April 3, that all new admissions into the programmes would remain suspended. She announced also that NUC and JAMB would work out the modalities for redistributing the students already admitted into the four programmes to other universities.

The minister explained that the ministry suspended the four courses in order to protect the quality of the university education system, and that the action was boosted by   several complaints received from students and their parents on the status of the four professional programmes. She said the courses may not have been suspended if critical factors such as physical infrastructure, lecture halls and theatres, learning resources, staff and consultation with relevant professional bodies, had been put in place before the programmes were set up in the university.

 Contrary to what the regulations provided, the minister said the university authorities did not provide for the relevant needs of the faculties and departments offering the programmes before establishing them. She added that even the university was so inconsiderate in their action that they even ignored advice offered by the National Universities Commission, NUC, not to admit students to these programmes.

Expressing disappointment with the current state of affairs in the university, Rufai said the university further disobeyed NUC directive to stop the programmes. She said the situation is so bad presently that those students who were admitted into the programmes spent so many years without a graduation date. To control the situation, she announced that the federal ministry of education has initiated a process to strengthen the governance structure of the university to ensure compliance and effective programmes development.

Various drastic measures recommended by the visitation panel are expected to follow the suspension of the four programmes at Uniabuja. Among these is a recommendation for the filling of vacancies and positions to provide effective checks on the excesses of the VC.

The panel said it was necessary to check the excesses of the VC because he contravened many aspects of the rules guiding University administration. The panel said, for instance, that Adelabu, who took office in July 2009, as the third substantive VC, made use of Adhoc committees who took over the role of the statutory and other committees of the university.

The panel also said that Adelabu did not see the office of the VC as a continuum from the past administration, and therefore, did not show serious commitment to the take off of four new programmes started by previous administrations in the University. To their disappointment too, the panel found that under Adelabu as VC, the faculty structure in the university is not working well. 

The panel also frowned at the present situation   whereby the university which has a student’s population of about 60,000, has only a mini library with an insignificant 60,000 books. Also worrisome, they said, “is that in this 21st (jet age) century, the University of Abuja exists without internet facilities, staff and student are totally excommunicated from the global academic community.” They also expressed shock at the closure of the already established and equipped radio station called Excellence Radio, after the university received $70,000 grant from a foreign donor agency.

The Uniabuja chapter of ASUU earlier complained of similar wrongdoings by Adelabu. In a petition written, September 2, 2011, by Clement Chup, chairman of UniAbuja ASUU, to the federal government, through the pro-chancellor of the University, the union of lecturers called  for urgent interventions and rescue over what they termed “non -adherence to due process, and unsatisfactory governance and leadership under Prof. Adelabu.” The union accused the VC of operating the institution as his private business outfit.

They also complained bitterly about lack of facilities for teaching and learning in the university. “How does one explain the situation where a university has only one inadequate laboratory for all science students, first degree, Masters, PhD as well. This is miserably sad and is a great disservice to an intellectual community. Government must do something to salvage the complete collapse of the school,” ASUU stated.

The Guobadia-led panel recommended that the various anomalies associated with Adelabu should be addressed by the governing council of the University. The FG accepted their recommendations.

By press time last week, Adelabu had not yet reacted to issues raised against him