UniUyo Workers to Down Tools Monday Over Acting VC Appointment
THE lingering crisis over the inability to appoint a substantive Vice Chancellor for the University of Uyo may not yet be over as some professors and senior non-teaching staff may down tools from Monday, December 22, 2025 in protest against the appointment of Acting VC.
Since the appointment of Professor Samuel Gbadebo Odewumi as the Acting Vice-Chancellor of University of Uyo by the Chairman of the Governing Council, the institution has never known peace.
Stakeholders have kicked saying the Council acted outside the provisions of the law by recommending a retired professor from Lagos State University (LASU) for the position without following due process.
Odewumi, a Professor of Transport Planning and Policy, Lagos State University (LASU), was appointer VC via letter dated December, 25, 2025, and signed by the Registrar and Secretary to Council, Mrs Blossom E. Okorie.
The letter stated, in part: “Further to the approval of the Visitor to the University, His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, as communicated by the Honourable Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, I write on behalf of the Chairman of the Governing Council of the University to convey your appointment as the Acting Vice-Chancellor, University of Uyo, Nigeria.
“The appointment takes effect immediately and shall remain in force pending the completion of the process for the appointment of a substantive Vice-Chancellor
Following the appointment, academic and non-academic activities at the main campus, Nwaniba and the town campus of the University of Uyo (UNIUYO) at Ikpa Road, is set to be grounded from tomorrow, Monday, December 22, 2025 following the imbroglio that trailed the inability of the institution’s management to name a new substantive vice chancellor (VC).
Source close to Professors and top management staff revealed that there are moves to mobilise workers to subtly protest by abstaining from their duty posts as from tomorrow.
Meerings are said to going on as the time of going to the press to see how they could reach a consensus on the line of action to take to protect their instruction from being hijacked by what they described as external forces
The five-year tenure of the 8th substantive VC, Prof Nyaudoh Ndaeyo, expired since November 30 and his successor ought to have taken over on December 1, but competing interests, had forced the management to opt for an acting chief executive officer (CEO), pending the resolution of the leadership impasse.
A source close to the Senate of the university disclosed that key contestants for the plum academic job including Prof Christopher Ekong, Dean of Social Sciences; Prof Aniekan Offiong, deputy vice chancellor (DVC) in charge of Administration, and Prof Antonia Essien, DVC Academics, and one other don, were the top contenders during screening in the run-up to the December 1 take-over date.
However, contending forces backing the aspirants failed to reach a consensus on the three top choices to pick for presentation to the visitor to the university, President Bola Tinubu, to choose from, after Prof Essien, the reported choice of the outgone VC Ndaeyo, was screened out.
It was gathered that after being screened out, the panel had tinkered on making Prof Essien, a Catholic Reverend sister, to steer the institution in acting capacity pending the resolution of the stalemate for a new substantive VC to emerge but her choice was rejected.
