UNIVERSITY OF ABUJA: THE END OF AN INGLORIOUS REIGN

By Samson Gbemiga Ogunwoye The controversial reign of Prof. Abdul Rasheed Na’Aallah as the Vice Chancellor of the University of Abuja has come to an end. It is worth noting that his administration left a bitter-sweet taste in the mouths of many, with many believing that the tenure of the Kwara State born academic was characterized by an Osama-like terror, Hitler’s bullying, and Abacha’s impunity. As it is to be expected, the end of every reality is sacrosanct, and hence, this farewell dirge to a man many dreaded like a tyrant Upon his assumption of office, many were under the euphoria that he was coming to make a positive difference, seeing as the university was several years behind its growth projections as a befitting Ivory Tower in the national capital of Africa’s largest country. Unfortunately, this turned out to be a mistaken perception that was largely fueled by his initial grandstanding and loquacious posturing about his leadership acumen and a nonexistent developmental footprint. Prof. Na’Allah, was discovered to be a braggadocio that sees himself as a superior entity to every mortal. No student, not even a lecturer, could look into his eyes and dare to offer a contrary opinion; even the people that facilitated his appointment were pushed down the ladder; used and discarded. When Prof. Na’Allah took over management of the University of Abuja, it was ranked 9th best university in Nigeria by the National University Commission (NUC) in 2019. Within five years of a ruthless act of misgovernance, he is handing over a citadel of learning that now ranks 27th in the country. His tenure is therefore a tragic moment of management that should never befall any institution in Nigeria again. During his five years in office, Na’Allah raised the school fees five times. When he arrived in 2019, school fees were as low as N23,000, but as of today, when he is departing, some are as much as N250,000. The acceptance fee was arbitrarily increased from N4,500 to N50,000. Arbitrary fee increments forced many known students out of school. Our association found itself in a puzzling situation most times, where it had to raise funds for affected students. Many students had to wait for more years because they could not write exams due to late payment of school fees or delays in course registration due to the continuous technical glitches experienced with the so-called Integrated Portal that he imported from his former University, which consumes more funds than necessary. There is no doubting the fact that he took commendable strides in the effort to improve physical infrastructure of the university, but virtually all the structures he built were alleged to be at astronomically inflated prices. A testament to the overloaded contracts with substandard delivery were the dilapidated and moribund state of buildings, barely two years after completion. Many of the build structures have had their roofs repaired with unabated leakages. Bad furniture, substandard facilities like air conditioning, electronics, amongst others have been consigned unserviceable, several years ahead of their expected lifespan. It is pathetic that Malam Na’Allah built more mosques than hostels and libraries within the campus. Numerous recruitment exercises were ill-fated because they were largely underscored by impeccable mediocrity, bigotry and impunity. In several instances, he imported second class lower as a graduate assistant at the expense of internally qualified candidates with first class and strong second-class lower degree. He did a great disservice to the University of Abuja graduates by projecting us as unemployable. The fact that 90% of his employees are from other universities lends credence to that assertion. If the illegal recruitment is allowed to stand, the repercussions of the deleterious exercise will be indelible, not only within Abuja but throughout the larger society, that will feel the impact of the half-baked graduates that this new set of lecturers will produce. The VC is alleged to show total disregard for federal character in a university that prides itself on being a university of national unity. About 90% of the people employed are from one region or religion. A lady from Baze University who got employed into my department reportedly said she got the job against her wish even though her father paid for it. Na’Allah was not alone, as there was evidence that top officials in the ministry of education and some top politicians were accomplices, thus turning an ivory tower into a cash and carry market. The sordid incident that occurred at the Department of Sociology is worthy of recount just to buttress the degree of high-handedness of the departing Vice Chancellor. Na’Allah brought in a graduate with a second-class lower degree from another university and engaged the fellow as a lecturer. But the then lady HOD stood her ground and refused to sign the guy into the department. The following day, the lady was abruptly removed as HOD, and a junior lecturer who was hired by Na’Allah less than a year earlier was made the new HOD to do all the dirty work. These are not fallacies, but realities. It happened. Na’Allah met a functional Alumni Association but paralysed it in his bid to silence all the prospective dissenting voices and opinions. The divide and rule tactic adopted as strategy by the VC weakened ASUU for several years, as it took the union almost five years to introspect and re-strategize before they could confront the monster in Na’Allah. It’s pathetic to know that Na’Allah met a University of Abuja without strike but left the school on strike. With his gangs of academic hooligans, Na’Allah practically killed the Student Union. Two variants of student union leaders were nurtured by Na’Allah: the lollipop generation with milk spilled all over their mouths and the crumble eaters who survive from patronage, most especially from National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS). The former were bullied to acute silence, and Na’Allah feasted on their credulity and timidity, while the latter were fed with crumbs, and he rode on their gluttonous appetite. The few dissenting voices, who

Embrace Advanced Technology, VC Advises Nigerian Academia

The Vice Chancellor, University of Abuja (UniAbuja), Prof. Abdul-Rasheed Na’Allah, has reiterated the need for educational community to embrace advanced technology, especially in automobile. Na’ Allah made this submission during the university’s 27th Pre-Convocation Lecture at the weekend in Abuja. He said that Nigeria had all required in terms of resources and technical know-how to have a robust technology, adding that it was time for Nigerians to think on the way forward. The vice chancellor said that the Nigerian train system 20 to 50 years ago was far better than what was obtainable at present; hence the need to focus attention on automobile technology. On his part, the Guest Lecturer, Mr Jelani Aliyu, Director-General, National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC), said Nigerians had important role in creating the new and advanced Nigeria of peace, progress and prosperity. Aliyu said to achieve the new Nigerian future, citizens must first of all imagine it, adding that the country had all it took to be at par with other developed countries of the world. He said that the problems of Nigeria were artificial phenomenon that should not be allowed to define it as a nation. “We must only be defined by our inherent capabilities, or be defined by what we can build; but by what we can achieve for a better tomorrow. “We are all born with special talents; everyone has incredible gifts that when nurtured and developed, will enable the realisation of amazing achievements. “When we look at countries like Germany, U.S., U.A.E, Japan or China and see the incredible progress they have made, such developments can also happen in Nigeria.” He said that advanced technology could help to expedite the ushering in of a new Nigeria. Aliyu called on all graduating and other students as potential builders of a nation that could be at par with any advanced one in the world to take advantage of advanced technology. “We must seek and adopt relevant advanced technology that would enable us uplift the lives of every man, woman and child. “Technology, which is intelligent and understands our specific challenges; we must search, adopt and develop advanced technology in energy, agriculture, transportation and housing. “Automobiles and transportation are my passion; I have always believed that we must not be afraid of adopting the most advanced technologies in that sector. ”Hence my commitment to help in bringing and develop vehicle electrification in Nigeria,” Aliyu said. According to the guest lecturer, NADDC has developed 100 per cent solar powered EV Charging Stations in three universities in the country. He said that the fourth Hybrid was at its headquarters in Abuja. Aliyu said discussion was underway with UniAbuja to build another solar powered EV Charging Station in the campus. The guest speaker said NADDC had set up the facilities to bring advanced technology to the doorsteps of students; so they could understand it and come up with more applicable solutions for Nigeria and Africa. He advised the graduands as they went into the world not to be afraid of leveraging and developing advanced technology. More so, the Minister of FCT, Mr Nyesom Wike, advised the graduands to use the wealth of knowledge and skills they had acquired to make positive change in the country. Wike, who was represented by the Secretary of Education, Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), Dr Danlami Hayyo, said that the university had consistently showed its commitment in finding solutions to the challenges facing the territory. “You are leaving this institution with your wealth of knowledge and skills, the future of the nation lies in your hands; I want you to use it to make positive change in our society. “Don’t stop learning; this is just the beginning; stay focused and be an ambassador of change not only in FCT but for our country Nigeria”, the minister said. The University Orator, Prof. Nkem Azuike, while reading the citation of the guest lecturer, said that he had brought significant development to the Nigeria automotive sector. Azuike said that Aliyu had driven private investments by automotive companies, reaching over 1 billion dollars. He said that the companies, with a combined production capacity of over 400,000 units per annum, were effectively producing different models and configurations of vehicles in the country. The highlight of the event was the presentation of plaques to the guest lecturer by the vice chancellor.