Good riddance…Tribute to Professor Adelabu

Until Monday 30th June 2014, Professor James Adebowale Adelabu, a prince from rural Oyo held court as the Vice Chancellor of the University of Abuja for five good years. Before his coming in 2009, we as a community had resolved under the various staff unions of the university that it was time we made all […]

Until Monday 30th June 2014, Professor James Adebowale Adelabu, a prince from rural Oyo held court as the Vice Chancellor of the University of Abuja for five good years. Before his coming in 2009, we as a community had resolved under the various staff unions of the university that it was time we made all efforts necessary in order to have one of us, an insider succeed Professor Nuhu Yaqub whose tenure was coming to an end.
Virtually all or most of us, excluding the perpetual pundits kept up to that promise and when Adelabu became a distant third in the selection process, we were excited because given the newly won autonomy status in which more than half of university councils were composed from inside.
On the day the council, under Professor Iya Abubakar was to discuss the report of the selection committee for possible adoption, the internal members rose in unison and insisted that any of the three could be vice chancellor and as such twisted the hands of the minority members on the council and voted overwhelmingly for the third, Adelabu while rejecting the first and best, Professor Abdullahi Zuru.
We thought we made history by reversing a trend that was already becoming a convention each time a vice chancellor was to be appointed for the university. Unfortunately, less than one year into office, the VC fell out with all those members of council who brought him into office and began to run the university as a one-man show.
In the five years that Adelabu held forte, there was never a time that the senate of the university considered in detail, any results, a function that is central to university senates. All results were after scrutiny of the senate business committee approved administratively by the vice chancellor. This is an abnormality that became the rule under Professor Adelabu.
For the five years that he held forte, the senate of the university which is the central nerve of all academic programs did not hold regular meeting ten times. Most of the senate meetings held were ad-hoc meant to discuss special issues and wound up soon after.
In every public university in Nigeria, the method of admitting students  is clear and standardized. There is usually an admission committee of the senate set up by the VC under the chairmanship of normally the Deputy Vice Chancellor, Academic or Administration or any other senior office of the university. In Adelabu’s case, he did all the admissions for the five years in his sitting room with very minimal institutional input.
Everyone had to cue in order to secure the favors of the vice chancellor if admission was to be gotten. That is why throughout the last five years in university of Abuja, it was visible that admission process was arbitrarily.
The vice chancellor was too busy procuring cement and counting trips of sands at construction sites leaving behind very important and germane functions of the university to suffer. If there is anything, it is safe to submit that Professor Adelabu’s tenure was a disaster and will take several years of very serious hard work to reverse the rot he brought to the system.
I am not in a position to say anything about financial recklessness which several visitation panels and investigation committees set up by the government of Nigeria. Each and every one of these committees indicted the vice chancellor but up till today the government that claims to be fighting corruption has done nothing.
All that Professor Adelabu did was to on various occasions resort to sentiments of region, tribe and religion and he remained in office until his tenure expired. At one forum he will tell his listeners that the opposition to him was from people who never wanted a southerner to be vice chancellor, at another he will claim that it was people who didn’t want a Christian to be vc. He won at the end because he was left until he brought the university on its knees.
I am not surprised because the same strategy seems to be abating even from the highest office in the federation. A president or his handlers who believe he is criticized because he is a minority in a nation of majorities can hardly see in between the lines when other clowns at the lower levels make such claims.
Not just for academic culture, financial management but even in the area of moral rectitude, Adelabu was rated very low. On this, we will make statements as soon as possible. I think the concept of university autonomy canvassed and won by Asuu has not been helpful to the university. In the choice of Professor Adelabu, it was a disaster and despite his woeful performance, he stood to ensure that a successor that would not open the wounds is appointed.
This is where people often get it wrongly. Why would anybody imagine that any crime committed could be successfully buried by a loyal successor? Its not about individuals, it is about systems and no matter how long it takes, the truth shall always overturn falsehood.