State varsity pro-chancellors reject regulatory interference, question UNIOSUN VC’s tenure extension

From Taiwo Oluwadare, Ibadan

The Committee of Pro-Chancellors of State-Owned Universities (COPSUN) has kicked against multiple regulatory interventions in university administration and raised questions over the reported two-year extension of the tenure of the Vice-Chancellor of the Osun State University (UNIOSUN), Osogbo.

The position was contained in a communique issued at the end of COPSUN’s 73rd quarterly meeting in Ibadan and signed by its Chairman, Professor Ayodeji Omole.

COPSUN said the growing involvement of professional regulatory bodies in university administration had created overlapping regulatory demands, placing additional pressure on universities.

It identified activities such as resource verification, accreditation, indexing, induction and licensi ng as areas where duplication had become a concern.

The committee argued that the NUC should have overriding regulatory authority over university administration, with professional bodies participating in accreditation exercises under NUC leadership.

It said this would help reduce duplication and address what it described as “accreditation fatigue” within universities.

The committee also turned its attention to the reported extension of the UNIOSUN Vice-Chancellor’s tenure.

According to COPSUN, it received a report that the Vice-Chancellor’s statutory five-year tenure had been extended by two years through an executive pronouncement by Governor Adeleke, the Visitor to the university.

It further stated that there was a proposal to amend the university law to legitimise the extension, but COPSUN questioned the legality of such an arrangement under the existing legal framework.

The committee resolved to formally communicate its position to Governor Adeleke and call for strict compliance with the existing law, citing the Universities (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 2012, as amended.

COPSUN also urged the university’s Pro-Chancellor to uphold due process and the applicable laws in the interest of sound university governance.

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