“Act first; think later; poor planning; inadequate preparation; timid and tepid resolve; “the fire brigade approach”. These stubborn ailments of the Nigerian polity also ride high in our Ivory Tower (University of Ibadan). Which is why our University is also plagued by many of those grave contradictions that stand between the country and progress …” – NIYI OSUNDARE (The Universe in the University: A Scholar-Poet’s Look from Inside Out)
On behalf of I, me and myself, I hereby officially welcome you to a new semester. I hope by now, you must have had enough of the specially “cooked by Mama” delicacies and a sufficient dose of rest laced with lengthy sleeps and garnished with funny scenes from African Magic & other T.V series. So fast you say? Well, apart from God, the only thing that lasts forever is nothing and that is why the Yoruba people in their infinite wisdom will say, “kii dun ko po, soki lobe oge” which means that a bouillabaisse can’t be delectable and still fill the pot. All the same, you are welcome back to the academic rigours of a new semester.
Still on welcoming, permit me to welcome you to this new column, UINTELLECTION, a new column I will be keeping where we try to dialogue and give quality comments on germane issues within and outside our community. This column will always strive to bring you opinions having substance, features on technology, business and entrepreneurship, relishing lines of poetry, bloodless satires as well as other philosophical doses fit for public consumption.
Sigh! Enough of the prologue, let’s get down to the business of the day. Well, I am afraid it’s not really “business” in that sense; it’s something softer, something concerning a rape of public trust and a desecration of academic sacredness. If you are conversant with the dailies, I am sure you must have heard about the national tales of yam-eating-goats and goats eating yams and how the aura of a no-nonsense President is already sending shivers down the spine of national looters. Don’t tell me you don’t know these tales. Ok, at least, you must have heard of those who went to emergency labours without being pregnant on hearing the “P” in probe and prison. Exactly! Now, you must know the stories of those kneeling down all around in a bid to buy clemency at the price of paltry handshakes and restive smiles. You see, those are the telltale signs of change, the prologue of sanity, I pray we live long to see the arrivals of the new chapters of this new Nigerian dream. Amen.
Unfortunately, it seems this whirlwind of change has completely neglected the Education sector, most especially, the Universities and in particular, the University of Ibadan. For if not the whirlwind of change has neglected us, I expected to have seen a headline like this, “EFCC invites UI VC over an alleged scam involving University rankings”. Oh, you are surprised? Well, I will not be surprised to see that kind of headline, in fact, it will gladdens my heart to see it. For the very moment I see that headline will be the convincing moment that this whirlwind of change is truly wholesome and holistic.
Early last month, it was all over the dailies that University of Ibadan emerged the first University in Nigeria and eight in Africa according to one Journals Consortium rankings. Well, I don’t really have any problem with any nameless online platform ranking my University as the first in Nigeria. However, my problem is with the meaningless euphoria that trailed that news with people of my University singing it all over the social media as if we just got a blank check from World Bank. My problem is with the fact that we failed to assess our pitiable state and reject that useless ranking purporting to give us wings when we have not even learnt to crawl. My problem is with our weakness and inability to say a capital “NO” in the face of an evident self-deception.
As if that was not enough, the University itself took this self-deception to a greater level by showcasing to the world in how much it takes pride in ranking and title than in substance and quality. It was on the 16th of August, I was browsing the web when I just decided to open the UI website. Well, I don’t really know why I had to check UI website that day but the urge of visiting it was just so strong. After typing www.ui.edu.ng it loaded the website and I was looking at it for any relevant news when my attention was drawn to the sliders on the homepage. Right there, I felt something was wrong on that page but I couldn’t just figure it out yet and when I finally did, it came as a combination of shock and surprise to me. There were six sliders and two were carrying information about UI being the best in Nigeria, after rubbing my eyes to make sure I saw it clearly; I saw that a slider was carrying the news of UI being ranked the best University in Nigeria by Journals Consortium and another slider carrying the news of UI being the best University in Nigeria as ranked by Webometrics. While the first slider may be true, the second is completely false as Covenant University was the one occupying that position at that particular moment on the Webometrics. This to a large extent showed how bad the current management wants the first title in Nigeria and the extent it can go to fabricate such.
No wonder the picture had picked race from the UI website homepage when I logged in few days ago to see if it was still there (Anyway, I managed to take a screen shot of it before it was removed) despite the OAU’s turn of social media frenzy as they were yet named as the new recipient of that self-delusion called “1st in Nigeria, so, so and so in Africa”. At this juncture, we need to face the bitter truth that Nigerian Universities have so much been overwhelmed by this illusion called University rankings that what they obviously exist for is to be ranked and not to cater to its primary responsibility of liberating minds. The tragedy of this decadence has eaten deep into the system that the philosophy has shifted from doing what is expected to what is being inspected in a bid to massage the shameless ego and demeaning pride of whoever is at the helms of administration. This brings a similar episode to mind, the regular NUC assessment show of shame; where each Department, Faculty and even the University itself tries to put forward a distorted version of their real picture. Because NUC is coming, unnecessary gra gra and shakara will be developed with emergency painting of the walls here and there. Students will be told to start to behave in a particular way and even in some department tell the students to lie they have a facility they’ve not even seen at all. Well, it is as bad as that.
Same thing happened when one of these nameless rankers came to UI around last semester to “assess” the websites and there were complaints about the website lacking students’ presence. Well, I just laughed in Mandarin. How do you expect it not to lack it when the University cannot even boast of a working e-mailing system for her students? How do you expect it not to lack students’ presence when what the University can only boast of is a signal-less wireless network system? How do you expect it not to lack students’ presence when the learning management system software will always have to use itself year in year out? How do you expect it not to? And need I remind us that students pay more than 60,000,000 naira in total for portal access every session!
Well, it will not be a surprise if the comments being peddled around on the social media are true, that all these useless rankings are actually bought with the exchange of dollar notes by the highest bidders. For no explanation can adequately explains how a nameless Journals Consortium out of nowhere in this strategic moment of imminent transition will just come up with one yeye ranking when it is obvious that the University has lost hope in the “more prestigious” Webometrics rankings. Of course, for a VC that wants to finish strong, making recourse to cassava bread when your foreign baker has refused to cooperate is not a bad idea. Such a VC can even become innovative and make two loaves of the cassava bread, package one as foreign baked and display the two for the whole world to see that he is an “Ashifa” (apologies to Funke Akindele, Miss Jennifer).
Indeed, this obsession in self-delusion of ranking is nothing but a rape of public trust and an assault on intellectuality. The gown in all sense of purpose ought to strive towards perfection and be a role model for the town. However, if the gown is now outwitting the town in this game of goat eating yams and yam-eating-goats, then posterity cannot be anything but hopeless. Being intimate with this kind of dishonoured acts is what our boys in YBNL Nation will refer to as “Abasha” and “iranu” or for a smoother anglicised version, abasharisaion and iranuraisation. The Yoruba people will call this jibiti (fraud), intellectual jibiti and if at all one were to write a story on this intellectual messiness, no title would have been more befitting than “The Jibitisation of University ranking…“
STUDENTS’ UNION ELECTION: A STAMMERER’S TALE
When the school management in connivance with some black sheep amongst the students decided to postpone the Students’ Union election last semester to September 5, it was as if September 5 will take eternity to come. Well, to the usual disappointment of him who hides behind the façade of time, it doesn’t always take forever. September 5 is around the corner. It is just as the revered recipient of 2014 Nigerian National Order of Merit Award, Niyi Osundare succinctly puts it :
For time it may take
Time it may take.
The stammerer will one day call his
Fa-fa-fa-ther-ther’s na-na-na-me! (Waiting Laughters, P. 74)
At this juncture, we may not need to go back to what prompted the initial postponement but it’s obvious that it was driven by the inherent oppression in the system, the case of failed leadership and a lack of common purpose in fighting for freedom amongst the students. However, if progress can’t be made in a journey for self-emancipation at least maintaining the status quo should not be a problem.
On this note, on behalf of every progressive Uite, I hereby appeal to all stakeholders to make sure that everything is being put in place for the smooth conduct of September 5 Students’ Union election. Everyone representing us in the Executive council, the Students’ Representative Council and the Electoral Committee should know that he or she is just privileged for such representation and also that such representation is a trust reposed in her/him. Therefore, it is noble and honourable not to do anything against the interest of those being represented.
May God direct our noble cause.
UI VC RACE: THE BATTLE FOR THE SOUL OF THE WHITE TOWER
For those interested in UI politics, you will agree with me that there is a kind of cold tension currently sweeping through the campus as a result of the ongoing process for the election/selection of the next professor to replace Prof. I.F Adewole as the next Vice Chancellor of the premier University, a position usually held for a single term of five years.
Well, for the sake of those who don’t know how the election/selection goes, I’ll attempt to explain the process as provided for in section 4 under the first schedule of the University of Ibadan Act. Where a vacancy occurs in the post of the Vice Chancellor, the Council shall put up an advert for such vacancy in reputable journals and Newspaper in Nigeria specifying the qualities of the person who may apply as well as terms and conditions attached to the appointment.
This process actually started last semester and it will be recalled that a total of 12 professors applied for the post of Vice Chancellor as published in several Nigerian dailies. After the application, the sitting Vice Chancellor shall then constitute a search team of five persons “to identify and nominate for consideration, suitable persons who are not likely to apply for the post of their own volition because they feel that it is not proper to do so.“ This committee was also set up last semester and it returned with two names out of which only one applied (Prof. M.A.K Smith from FUTA) bringing the total number of applicants to 13. It was at this stage that the Community Unions (ASUU, SU, NAAT, NASU & SSANU) organised an interactive session for all the thirteen aspirants at the Great Trenchard Hall on the 13th of July, 2015 with the absence of Prof. Arinola Olasumbo Sanya, who coincidentally happens to be the only female aspirant.
After the search committee, a joint council and Senate selection board consisting of five persons shall then through an examination of the Curriculum Vitae of the aspirants recommend suitable candidates for further consideration to the Council. The Council shall then select/elect three candidates from amongst the candidates recommended by the Selection Board and forward these three names in order of preference to the President as the Visitor who shall then finally appoint the Vice Chancellor from any of the three candidates.
Talking about the political permutations and combinations of the person likely to emerge, a view is strongly held in some quarters that Prof. A.I Olayinka from the department of Geology may end up as the next Vice Chancellor of the Premier University because of his close relationship and age-long association with the incumbent Vice Chancellor. Be that as it may, some others believe that if merit is considered, then, Prof. A.E Oluleye from the department of Industrial & Production Engineering should be appointed as the next Vice Chancellor owing to his brilliant rhetoric and presentation at the University of Ibadan Community Forum held in Trenchard Hall. It should also be noted that this is the second time Prof. Oluleye will be contesting for UI vice chancellorship and people just think it is fair for him to emerge this time around. However, Prof. Francis Egbokhare from the department of Linguistics & African Language was also in the race that paved way Prof. Adewole as the Vice Chancellor in 2010. Though he is also considered to merit the seat but for the fear of an ethnic bias of him not being a Yoruba which has made people to doubt his eventual emergence. However, if he emerges, he will become the third non-Yoruba Vice Chancellor of the Premier University after Prof. Kennet Dike and Prof. Tekena Tamuno.
Prof. A.A.B Agbaje of the department of Political Science is also thought to be a strong candidate in the race having served under Prof. Bamiro as a Deputy Vice Chancellor. If he emerges, he will be the first indigene of Ibadan to become the Vice Chancellor of the University of Ibadan since its inception in 1948. Prof. Labo Popoola from the department of Forest Resources Management is also considered as a likely candidate for the hot seat due to his performances in previous positions held. The two candidates outside the University, Prof. Smith from Federal University of Technology, Akure and Prof. Oluwole Adedeji from Lagos state University are not really considered as strong competitions because they are not part of the system. The first female Physiotherapist in Africa, Prof. Arinola Sanya, though the only female aspirant and the immediate past DVC administration, is also not thought to be one of the major players because of her strained relationship with the leadership of the current administration.
Anyways, permutations are still on and the combinations are still rolling. The election/selection/appointment process is still ongoing and while we await the eventual winner, we can only pray that the best woman or man emerge. Though, merit will be considered but we can’t overlook the place of politics and lobby. And whoever emerges to replace Prof. Adewole should know that we are tired of this mediocrity. He or she should know that we are tired of the elements of conservation that has eaten deep into the fibres of this University system. Selah.
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