I wrote a few years ago, noting that the indigenization of key positions in federal universities in Nigeria is the new order. Yes, being a Yoruba man is not enough in University of Ibadan; it has to be an Ibadan man. Being an Igbo man does not cut it in UNN, he must be an Nsukka man. And being a Hausa Fulani cannot qualify unless the man is from Zaria for ABU. Too bad that I am using “man” because yes, in nearly 99% of these races, our female professors are overly marginalized.
Ibadan did this, after Nsukka citizens played the same game (read here). Now, the great Ife people do not want to be left out: “The protesters had threatened to shut down the institution…, accusing the governing council of scheming out an indigene of Ile-Ife, the institution’s host community, from being appointed.” So, it has to be an Ife indigene as a Vice Chancellor or nothing.
Sure, there are many benefits which local communities should get from having federal properties in their domains. But making academic appointments based on indigenization is something Nigeria does not need now.
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But it is not only the appointment of VCs. One of the greatest moments for me as a young man was going back to Prof SOE Ogbogu to personally tell him that I was rejecting the automatic offer to join the faculty of FUTO. That job came with no interview or no application because it was reserved for the best graduating student.
Imagine if they had schemed me out for an Owerri student, I would be eternally offended. But today, it happens. We now have top students being left out due to tribal related issues.
Daily, this nation is dying due to tribalism depriving us the passion to compete globally.
One of the 16 applicants shortlisted for the office out of the 20 that applied, Rufus Adedoyin, a professor of Physiotherapy, had been backed by a group of elders and youth of the community under the umbrella of “Town and Gown.”
They cited examples of the Universities of Ilorin, Jos and also, Ibadan, which have been administered at different times by indigenes of their host communities.
True to the protesters’ threat, for more than 48 hours beginning from Monday, both young and elderly men and women including those clad in traditional attires and even masquerades besieged the university, threatening fire and brimstone.
They demanded the reversal of the governing council’s decision and threatened that there would be no peace until an indigene is appointed the vice-chancellor.
One of the coordinators of the protest, Agbogunleri Oluwaseun, said the only path to peace was the nullification of the appointment of Mr Bamire, the vice-chancellor-designate, “and the announcement of Mr Adedoyin, the preferred candidate of the Ife people.”
He said; “What we want is that the governing council, the university management and the federal government led by President Muhammadu Buhari, should consider the indigenous person and declare our candidate (Rufus Adedoyin) as the vice-chancellor of Obafemi Awolowo University.”
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