Tinubu Reshuffles Leadership at Federal Universities

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has announced major leadership changes across several federal universities, including the University of Abuja, now renamed Yakubu Gowon University.

A statement by the President’s spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga, confirmed that these changes take effect immediately.

At Yakubu Gowon University, the entire governing council has been dissolved, and Professor Aisha Sani Maikudi has been removed as Vice-Chancellor. Senator Lanre Tejuoso, previously the Pro-Chancellor of the University of Agriculture, Makurdi, has been appointed as the new Pro-Chancellor. His former role in Makurdi will now be filled by Senator Joy Emordi, who has been reassigned as the Pro-Chancellor of Alvan Ikoku University of Education.

Professor Lar Patricia Manko has been appointed as the Acting Vice-Chancellor of Yakubu Gowon University for a six-month term. She will not be eligible to apply for the substantive Vice-Chancellor position when it becomes available.

Similarly, at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), President Tinubu has removed Professor Polycarp Emeka Chigbu from his position as Acting Vice-Chancellor ahead of his tenure’s expiration on February 14. Professor Oguejiofu T. Ujam has been appointed as his replacement for a six-month period, with the same ineligibility condition for the permanent role.

The leadership changes at UNN also affect the position of Pro-Chancellor. General Ike Nwachukwu has been reassigned to serve as the Pro-Chancellor of the University of Uyo, while Engineer Olubunmi Kayode Ojo, formerly Pro-Chancellor of the Federal University of Lokoja and the Federal University of Oye-Ekiti, has been appointed as UNN’s new Pro-Chancellor.

Further restructuring includes the appointment of Professor Zubairu Tajo Abdullahi as the new Pro-Chancellor of the Federal University of Lokoja, succeeding Ojo. Additionally, Senator Sani Stores, a Council Member at UNN, has been named the Pro-Chancellor of Alvan Ikoku University of Education, replacing Senator Joy Emordi.

Barrister Olugbenga Kukoyi, another Council Member at UNN, has also been appointed as the new Pro-Chancellor of Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka.

According to Onanuga, these appointments and reassignments align with President Tinubu’s vision of strengthening Nigeria’s higher education system through dynamic leadership and enhanced governance. The administration aims to foster academic excellence and accountability within the nation’s tertiary institutions.