The chairman of the federal government’s special Visitation Panel to probe the leadership crisis at the University of Lagos (UNILAG) has on Thursday faulted the government’s decision to reinstate the embattled vice chancellor of the university, Oluwatoyin Ogundipe.
It could be recalled that President Muhammadu Buhari reinstated the embattled Vice-Chancellor of the University of Lagos on Wenesday, Oluwatoyin Ogundipe, who was suspended in August.
The president also dissolved the Governing Council of the university, formerly chaired by Wale Babalakin
In a series of letters to the Chief of Staff to the President, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari, and the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, Sa’ad cast doubts on the integrity of the report and acquittal of Ogundipe.
The professor of Architecture said he agreed to sign the report to avoid another crisis and save the government from embarrassment.
He, however, expressed regret that he had been “stabbed on the back” by people he trusted.
According to him, the recommendation that Ogundipe should be reinstated was limited to the procedure of his termination but did not mean that he was not guilty of all the allegations.
President Muhammadu Buhari had on Wednesday approved the reinstatement of Ogundipe as UNILAG vice-chancellor.
He said the removal of the vice-chancellor by the university’s governing council did not follow due process.
Sa’ad said: “The recommendation that the VC should be reinstated was limited to the procedure of his termination. It did not mean he should be absolved of all wrongdoing.”
He stressed that the report of the panel was one-sided because the majority of the members were biased towards Ogundipe and the Terms of Reference were also skewed against the Pro-Chancellor of the institution, Dr. Wale Babalakin, who had since resigned from the position.
