UNILAG Appoints Soyombo as Acting VC

Ololade Adeyanju/

The Governing Council of the University of Lagos (UNILAG) has announced the appointment of Prof. Theophilus Soyombo as the acting Vice-Chancellor of the institution, following the termination of the appointment of Prof. Oluwatoyin Ogundipe.

The sacking of the vice chancellor was announced at a meeting of the Governing Council of UNILAG held at the secretariat of the National Universities Commission in Abuja, yesterday.

The announcement of Soyombo as the VC was contained in a statement issued in the early hours of today by the Registrar and Secretary to the Council, Oladejo Azeez.

He advised the public to totally disregard a statement attributed to Ogundipe denying his removal.

The statement reads, “Members of the public are hereby advised to totally disregard the statement attributed to the said former vice chancellor. The position remains that he was lawfully removed by the Governing Council at a meeting fully attended by all Council members.

“I also wish to use the opportunity to inform members of the public that Council at the said meeting duly appointed Professor Theophilus Omololu Soyombo of the Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Lagos as Vice Chancellor of the university in an acting capacity.

While seven members of the council were said to have voted for the removal of Ogundipe, four voted against it.

But one of them reportedly voted that he should rather be placed on suspension.

The meeting was chaired by the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the institution’s Governing Council, Dr. Wale Babalakin (SAN).

A statement yesterday by Azeez, titled, ‘Notice to the general public on the removal of the Vice Chancellor of the University of Lagos’, read, “Ogundipe was sacked based on investigation of serious acts of wrongdoing, gross misconduct, financial recklessness and abuse of office.

“The general public is hereby notified that at an emergency meeting held on Wednesday, August 12, 2020, and in accordance with the statutory powers vested in it by law, the Governing Council of University of Lago removed Prof. Oluwatoyin T. Ogundipe, FAS, from office as Vice Chancellor of the university with immediate effect.

“The decision was based on council’s investigation of serious acts of wrongdoing, gross misconduct, financial recklessness and abuse of office against Prof. Oluwatoyin T. Ogundipe, FAS.”

However, the Academic Staff Union of Universities, UNILAG Branch, has condemned the purported sacking of the institution’s vice chancellor.

The Chairman of ASUU in the institution, Dr Dele Ashiru, said the Chairman of the Governing Council, Dr Wale Babalakin, was behind the plot.

Ashiru insisted that Ogundipe remained the VC, adding that his sacking was against the law and would not stand.

“His removal is illegal and uncalled for. Our union condemns in the strongest term the purported removal. It is the machination of the pro-chancellor to destabilise this university and our union has been on the forefront of the agitation against a reckless and lawless pro-chancellor.

“We reaffirm our confidence in the leadership of Professor Toyin Ogundipe as Vice Chancellor of the university,” the union’s chairman stressed.

In its reaction, the Federal Government said it was yet to be briefed on the the development.

The Director of Press in the Federal Ministry of Education, Ben Bem Goong, in a statement said while the FMoE was awaiting proper briefing from UNILAG authorities.

The statement however noted that the governing council had the power to hire and fire, as long as the decision followed follow due process.

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