By Our Reporter
A crisis of monumental proportion is currently rocking the prestigious University of Lagos.
This has to do with the sacking of the Vice Chancellor of the University, Prof. Oluwatoyin Ogundipe by the Governing Council of the institution following the termination of his appointment.
The sacking of the vice chancellor was announced at a meeting of the Governing Council of UNILAG held at the National Universities Commission in Abuja.
While seven members of the council were said to have voted for the removal of Ogundipe, four voted against itt, while one of them voted that he should rather be placed on suspension.
The meeting was chaired by the UNILAG Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of its Governing Council, Dr. Wale Babalakin (SAN).
According to a statement by the Registrar and Secretary to the Council, Oladejo Azeez, titled, ‘Notice to the general public on the removal of the Vice Chancellor of the University of Lagos’, read, “Ogundipe was sacked based on investigation of serious acts of wrongdoing, gross misconduct, financial recklessness and abuse of office.
“The general public is hereby notified that at an emergency meeting held on Wednesday, August 12, 2020, and in accordance with the statutory powers vested in it by law, the Governing Council of University of Lago removed Prof. Oluwatoyin T. Ogundipe, FAS, from office as Vice Chancellor of the university with immediate effect.
“The decision was based on council’s investigation of serious acts of wrongdoing, gross misconduct, financial recklessness and abuse of office against Prof. Oluwatoyin T. Ogundipe, FAS.”
The Governing Council of the UNILAG thereafter announced the appointment of Prof. Theophilus Soyombo as the acting Vice Chancellor of the institution.
The announcement of Soyombo as the VC was contained in a statement issued on Thursday by the Registrar and Secretary to the Council, Oladejo Azeez.
He advised the public to totally disregard the statement attributed to Ogundipe denying his removal.
The statement reads, “Members of the public are hereby advised to totally disregard the statement attributed to the said former vice chancellor. The position remains that he was lawfully removed by the Governing Council at a meeting fully attended by all Council members.
“I also wish to use the opportunity to inform members of the public that Council at the said meeting duly appointed Professor Theophilus Omololu Soyombo of the Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Lagos as Vice Chancellor of the university in an acting capacity.
While reacting, UNILAG VC, Prof. Ogundipe, in a statement on Wednesday, refuted reports of his removal and added that he remained the vice chancellor of the institution.
The statement, which was signed by the vice chancellor himself, was titled, ‘Re: Notice to the General Public on the Removal of the Vice Chancellor, University of Lagos by Oladejo Azeez, Esq’.
He said, “The purported removal is an illegality and cannot stand as it is in clear violation of the University of Lagos Act as amended by the Universities (Miscellaneous Provisions) (Amendment) Act 2003.”
