WHO IS RUNNING YOUR UNIVERSITY IN NIGERIA? May 25, 2023

 

Capital Campaign: He “brought a remarkable range of qualities and experience to the Corporation.”

Who are the people we appoint to head and manage our universities in Nigeria? It matters. It is about business acumen and fundraising sagacity. Not a son of the soil factor or the favourite of the appointing Governor or Minister.

Only in Nigeria, you find a professor who cannot offer an elementary distinction between a Balance Sheet and an Income Statement appointed as the Vice-Chancellor or President of a university. And you expect the university to be financially viable, stable, or self-sustaining.

In America, managing an institution of learning is a big business. The universities have their President and Board of Directors or Governing Council, independent of the President of the university. In Nigeria, the reverse is the case; our Vice Chancellors are a power unto themselves - emperorlike, dictatorial, and accountable to no one. And they have little or no understanding of fundraising or revenue drive.

Over and over again, we help to perpetuate a culture of indolence via the arbitrary selection process and, at the same time, expect improvement in students' welfare and a conducive environment for Lecturers and non-academic staff. How can you experience improvement under such circumstances?

It is about management expertise and a culture of accountability, well-established and applicable throughout the length and breadth of the university administration. You cannot discipline erring lecturers when your office reeks of fraud and squandering of riches?

THECRIMSON.COM

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