By Ikeugonna Eleke
A rights group, International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (Intersociety), has condemned the absence of Governing Councils in Federal Government owned Tertiary Institutions in Nigeria.
The group, in a press statement signed by its board of trustees’ chairman, Comrade Emeka Umeagbalasi, said the development had given the leadership of such institutions the powers to act arbitrarily, without checks.
President Bola Tinubu had one month after his swearing in May last year, dissolved the Governing Councils of Federal Government controlled universities, polytechnics, monotechnics, colleges of education and other degree awarding Institutions.
For 10 months now, the president is yet to constitute a new Governing Council for all the 203 federal institutions involved.
The press statement by the group called on Tinubu to quickly constitute the councils of all the institutions involved, and to ensure they take into cognizance the federal character principle and also appoint deserving persons.
‘The present Government of Nigeria under Senator Ahmed Bola Tinubu is hereby called upon to duly constitute the Governing Councils of the affected degree awarding Institutions.
‘This must be done as a matter of uttermost immediacy and inexcusability. The Senator Ahmed Bola Tinubu led Government of Nigeria must also purge itself of dictatorial tendencies and inclinations and conduct its public affairs strictly in line with the international democratic best practices, including at all times adhering to due processes and procedures under the UN System which must include use of merit and avoid resorting to discrimination and segregation (structural violence) in all federal office appointments and postings.
‘The reconstitution of the Governing Councils must also be carried out in full compliance with Sections 14 (3) and 42 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 as amended.
‘The FG must ensure that due and diligence processes are followed and adhered to in the appointment of new and substantive VCs as replacements for the outgoing ones and attempts to imposed stooges of the former or outgoing ones thwarted and reversed.’
The group said not less than five Vice Chancellors of federal universities were due for retirement soon, and that the non-existence of Governing Councils would give the outgoing Vice Chancellors the opportunity to appoint their lackeys as acting Vice Chancellors.
