By; BAYO AKAMO,Ibadan
The Ibadan Zone of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) on Sunday demanded immediate resignation from office of the Vice Chancellor of University of Ilorin, Professor AbdulGaniyu Ambali.
ASUU in a statement made available to journalists in Ibadan jointly signed by Dr Ade Adejumo and Dr Deji Omole declared that the Vice Chancellor should “honourably resign his appointment” to allow for independent investigation of alleged fraud levelled against him.
The union stressed that in the alternative, the Ministry of Education, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences commission (ICPC) should commence investigations into the alleged fraud “to avoid insinuation of complicity”.
“At this point the Union has no option but to call on the Vice-Chancellor of UNILORIN to honourably resign his appointment in view of the weight of these allegations, in order to allow for an independent investigation ” it said.
ASUU added “this is the civilised practice. In the alternative, the Union calls on the Ministry of Education and the crime authorities to swing into action in order to avoid any insinuation of complicity”.
The union pointed out that the fresh call for the resignation of the VC was necessary in view of the monumental fraud revealed by an investigative reported by “The Nation newspapers which lend credence to the petition the union submitted against the present and past UNILORIN Vice chancellors”.
ASUU in the press statement noted that it had it on good authority that the UNILORIN management is allegedly moving staff around the Registry and Bursary with a view to possibly doctor and destroy relevant evidences,saying,“the situation is urgent. As we speak, in the wake of the current exposures, the UNILORIN Administration is massively moving staff around in the Registry and Bursary, possibly to be able to doctor or destroy relevant documents!“
Alleging that “UNILORIN’S regime of lawlessness, corruption and abuse of office has now reached crescendo”,ASUU stated that “this becomes more imperative in the absence of the Governing Council, whose term has expired, and in view of the lopsided composition of the UNILORIN Governing Council which in any event is skewed in favour of the same Administration”.
Emphasizing that federal government cannot continue to pretend to be against corruption when it has remained silent on several whistle blowing over allegations of fraud by the present and immediate past Vice Chancellor of UNILORIN, the union stressed that the institution has also been in the news “for disobeying the orders of Court, including the Supreme Court and the National Industrial Court” saying, “only a few days ago, UNILORIN was again in the news for beating up a court bailiff of the State High Court, tearing up the bailiff’s clothes and smashing his mobile telephone”.
“The only ‘sin’ of the bailiff was that he went officially to deliver court summons on the institution’s spokesperson. This situation is an exact replica of what happened in the same University in 2001 when two court bailiffs of the Federal High Court were assaulted in the office of the Vice-Chancellor and Registrar respectively! Does the Ministry of Education or the other responsible authorities have to wait until they start beheading court bailiffs in UNILORIN before swinging into action? ENOUGH IS ENOUGH”.
It will be recalled that ASUU in the said petition had alleged the Vice Chancellor committed fraud, corruption, plagiarism, nepotism, lawlessness, and other heinous acts and unlawful appointment and promotion without following due process as well as defrauding students of millions of naira.
