Group backs Olatunji-Bello for LASU VC race | EduCeleb
EduCeleb
10th January 2021
A group, Lagos Integrity Group (LIG) has backed the aspiration of Professor Ibiyemi Olatunji-Bello to become the next Vice-Chancellor of Lagos State University (LASU).
It noted that the scientist who is the wife of the Lagos State Commissioner for Environment in the state, Mr Tunji Bello has all that it takes to occupy the position.
The group debunked the allegation by “mischievous vested interests” that Olatunji-Bello, a top contender for the post is a non-indigene of the state and should therefore be excluded from consideration for the exalted academic position.
Addressing a press conference, the president of the group, Mr Dayo Macaulay, described the allegation as a “malicious fabrication of falsehood, wicked and the height of man’s inhumanity to man, which reminds one of the cruelties of the apartheid segregation in South Africa decades ago.”
“I am saying this because Professor Bello is maternally an indigene of Olowogbowo area of Lagos Island. The fact that her husband, Hon Tunji Bello, is also an indigene of Lagos Island, qualifies her as an indigene by marriage, and therefore stands her on competent ground to be the next VC of LASU.
“Apart from the foregoing, Professor Ibiyemi Bello is an erudite academician and scholar of high repute, who stands head and shoulder above other contestants in the on-going race for a new vice- chancellor.
“Apart from her reputable academic feat, it remains a tribute to her multi-faceted level of competence and sterling endowment, that Professor Bello also made an indelible impression as a seasoned administrator, during her stint as acting vice- chancellor of the university.
“It also needs be remarked that the prodigious skill in conflict resolution and crisis management , which was deployed by the renowned scientist, in bringing about a new lease of peace and stability, particularly at that time, which coincided with a critical period of crisis in the life of the institution, remains a feat for which she has made an indelible footprint in the history of the reputable academic citadel and for which she has also earned an enviable space in the hall of fame. This is why the subterranean manoeuvres being mounted by these mischievous vested interests could be described as the height of wickedness,” Macaulay said.
On Friday, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu had ordered the cancellation of the selection process and asked Olanrewaju Fagbohun, the outgoing VC, to convene an emergency senate meeting to appoint one of the deputy vice-chancellors as acting vice-chancellor from Monday, January 11.