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…Integrity and merit should be determinants
In Nigeria, the appointment of Vice-Chancellors (VCs) has a long history of controversy. One of the bases for acrimony is what has been perceived as ethnic dominance of the leaderships of the apex academic institutions. Today, a mirror image of the problem is becoming rampant in the different geo-political zones of the country, with host communities of federal universities insisting that indigenous people be made VCs of the respective institutions.
In one case, the problem was compounded with the introduction of a religious dimension. When a candidate who duly emerged as VC had a name which sounded like that of a Muslim, protests by the indigenes ensued, and ended only when they discovered that the VC-elect was actually a Christian.
This anti-intellectual trend may have made the Executive Secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), Sonny Echono, to declare as follows at the 36th convocation lecture of the Federal University of Technology, Owerri, Imo State, on December 7, as reported by Punch newspaper: “The sponsorship of the selection process of Vice Chancellors by politicians has made university administration increasingly local.”
The implication of this, according to him, is that “Our universities have become increasingly local, with the majority of academic and non-academic staff sponsored by local politicians and other leaders from the host communities. Political affiliation has also assumed overarching importance in the selection process.” All of these create problems for the maintenance of discipline within the system.
Echono was further reported to have noted: “Principal officers exert enormous influence, especially in procurement (Tender Board) and payments for projects, goods, and services. Contractors have been known to sponsor candidates for Vice Chancellor in return for patronage.” This may be the reason for the widespread allegations of corruption in the Nigerian university system. In one instance, it was an incumbent president himself who made the unflattering allegation. The effect of such corrupt practices in contract award is that it undermines the capacity to enforce implementation rules and ensure quality delivery.
While noting the need for accountability at every level of the selection process, to guarantee integrity and meritocracy, Echono offered this solution: “The autonomy of universities needs to be strengthened to minimise political interference.” But, is inadequate autonomy the real issue?
According to The Universities (Miscellaneous Provisions) (Amendment) Act 2003 (otherwise called the University Autonomy Bill), the composition of the Governing Council of a federal university is as follows: “(a) the Pro-Chancellor; (b) the Vice-Chancellor; (c) the Deputy Vice-Chancellors; (d) one person from the Federal Ministry responsible for Education; (e) four persons representing a variety of interest and broadly representative of the whole Federation to be appointed by the National Council of Ministers; (f) four persons appointed by the Senate from among its members; (g) two persons appointed by the Congregation from among its members; and (h) one person appointed by Convocation from among its members.”
From this provision, the total number of members of Council is typically 17. Out of this number, 6 (i.e., a, d and e) are clearly external members, and 10 (i.e., b, c (who are normally 3), f and g) are clearly internal members. One person appointed by Convocation from among its members (i.e., h, who is usually the President of the Alumni Association) is hybrid, because they could fit into either of the external or internal member categories.
The Autonomy Bill vests the Council with the power to appoint VCs without interference from the government or its agencies. Since the internal members of Council are in the majority, indicating a significant measure of autonomy in the VC appointment process, why do the internal members lose control of the process, and why does the process become typically acrimonious and merit-supplanting?
One of the reasons is the typical provincial perception of a federal university as “our university” by indigenes of the state or even city in which the university is located. The effect of this is that even if an indigene of the area does not emerge as the best candidate, pressure of all sorts (including weird intimidation) is piled on the Council, by traditional rulers or even state governments, to declare that indigene as the VC-elect.
It is also believed that, sometimes, the pressure is from the regulatory agencies themselves. These are the Federal Ministry of Education and the National Universities Commission. Moreover, it is believed that pressure sometimes comes from ruling party leaders and key functionaries of the Federal Government.
The internal members of Council themselves contribute to the problems when they and/or the unions they belong to get sucked into the VC selection scheming and so lose their power to insist on making the best interest of the university the overriding consideration in the selection.
In some cases, the majority status of internal members of Council is undermined when, in pursuit of personal interest, a destabilising number of internal members join the VC race. As contestants, these internal members cannot be part of the decision-making process. This creates a situation in which, by default, the external members of Council become the majority, and the process is open to a higher risk of external manipulation.
The implication of all of the foregoing is that the choice of external members into the Governing Councils of federal universities should be guided by the patriotic desire to serve the Nigerian university system rather than primordial or pecuniary interests. Moreover, the election of internal members of the Governing Council should be underlain by the desire to promote the best interests of the university and the enhancement of factors that would make individuals within the system to be able to fulfill their roles in relation to the growth of the institution.
As the saying goes, “The fish rots first from the head.” If a VC is therefore appointed with debilitating psychological, socio-political and financial baggage, the chances of self-replicating mediocrity is high, and it would be difficult for them to effectively lead the university to meet the developmental yearnings of the nation.
(THE NATION)
