A Don of the University of Abuja, University, Professor Mohammed Yelwa has stressed the need for the harmonization of requirements for the Position of Vice-Chancellorship in the public and private Universities in Nigeria.
Professor Yelwa of the Department of Economics, University of Abuja told Journalists during an interview in Minna that the government also need to work towards improving University Welfare packages.
While explaining that the process of appointing Vice-Chancellors has continued to generate avoidable tension and legal battles in the country, Professor Yelwa said the appointment of Vice-Chancellors in recent years have been a source of avoidable disputes, crises, and prolonged litigations.
He maintained that the major source of conflict is the lack of uniformity in requirements-particularly the controversial ten years clause of professorial experience.
According to him “this has resulted to inconsistency which has created loopholes for manipulation in some institutions thereby leading to unjust disqualification of competent candidates.
“It is imperative that the Federal Ministry of Education in collaboration with the National Universities Commission (NUC) develop clear, uniformed and binding guidelines to harmonize the criteria for the appointment of Vice-Chancellors in both public and private universities.
“Such harmonization should take into cognizance the peculiarities of the Nigerian University system while aligning with global best practices.”
Professor Yelwa hinted that the current disparities in interpretation and application of the ten-year professorial experience requirement have created fertile grounds for acrimony and institutional instability in the country.
The Professor stated that to address these recurring issues, the Universities (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, and other relevant laws should be reviewed to eliminate ambiguities in order to enhance peace in the system, adding that “this will not only ensure fairness, transparency, and meritocracy in the selection process but also strengthen the integrity of University governance in Nigeria.
“It will go a long way in reducing conflicts, restoring trust in the system, and enabling Universities to focus on their core mandate of teaching, research, and community service without the distractions of prolonged leadership tussles.”
He emphasized that the “search clause” in the Act should only apply to universities less than 20 years old. Any institution with more than two decades of history should have produced enough professors qualified for Vice-Chancellorship without external search committees.
Furthermore, the professor of Economics appealed to the Federal Government to immediately release all withheld salaries and urgently review the welfare of University workers nationwide, adding that inflation has eroded their earnings, and the current salaries can no longer sustain the standard of living required of academic professionals.
According to him, “in the past, Nigerian professors had easier access to international research grants, but such opportunities have become scarce and therefore urge the Federal Government, and particularly TETFund, to create structured grant schemes for our Doctoral students to access Post-Doctoral training opportunities as it is the practice in advanced countries.”
Professor Yelwa reiterated that the future of Nigerian higher education depends on decisive action—both to harmonize leadership appointments and to restore dignity to the academic profession.