Over two years after establishment, Zamfara State University gets principal officers | EduCeleb
EduCeleb
20th April 2020
Governor Bello Matawalle has approved the appointments of three principal officers for the newly established Zamfara State University (ZAMSU).
This is coming about two years after the university got the licence of the National Universities Commission (NUC) to operate.
The appointments according to statement issued over the weekend by the Senior Special Assistant on New Media to Zamfara Governor, Ibrahim Bello Zauma was announced by Special Adviser Higher Education to Matawalle, Abdullahi Gurbin Bore.
The statement named Professor Mu’azu Abubakar Gusau as Vice-Chancellor, Bashir Samaila as Registrar, and Usman Mohammed Bello as Bursar.
The appointments which are with immediate effect followed the recommendations of the report of the committee on strategy and development chaired by Professor Yusuf Muhammad Adamu Tsafe.
The committee had earlier presented its report on the smooth take-off of the university that had begun admitting students all along without tangible academic staff.
Mu’azu Abubakar Gusau holds a PhD in Toxicology from the University of Surrey, Guildford, United Kingdom and has been a Professor at the Department of Biochemistry, Usmanu Danfodiyo University Sokoto (UDUS) since 2009.
Mu’azu who has been lecturing in UDUS for 31 years now has occupied several administrative and organisational positions which include Head of Department, Biochemistry, UDUS; Deputy Dean, Faculty of Science, UDUS; Coordinator, Postgraduate Studies, UDUS; Coordinator, Medical Biochemistry, UDUS; Member, Faculty Board, College of Health Science, UDUS; and Head of Department, Biochemistry, Umaru Musa Yar’adua University Katsina among others.
He has served as consultant to the Department of Petroleum Resources on Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), and consultant on general toxicological issues; served the NUC in Resource Verification Exercise to several Nigerian universities; and also served as an External Examiner for Biochemistry and MBBS in several universities.
He is also a member, The Biochemical Society, United Kingdom; British Toxicology Society, United Kingdom; National Association of Biochemistry and Molecular Biologists of Nigeria; Science Association of Nigeria; and West African Society of Pharmacology among others.
Bashir Samaila who hails from Talata-Mafara got both his first and second degrees in English Language from UDUS and ABU Zaria respectively.
Until his recent appointment, Bashir was the Registrar College of Agriculture and Animal Science (CAAS) Bakura since 2015.
Bashir who has been working in the tertiary education system for 20 years now has occupied several administrative positions which include Deputy Registrar; Student Affairs Officer; Schedule Officer, NYSC Matters; Desk Officer, NBTE Matters; Desk Officer, JAMB Matters; and Desk Officer, Nigerian Security Printing and Minting among others. Bashir also holds a Certificate in School Management and Leadership (CSML) and has served as member, secretary, and chairman of several committees both within and outside academia.
Usman Muhammed Bello who hails from Bungudu holds a Bsc in Economics from Usmanu Danfodiyo University Sokoto and has been a professional finance officer for 18 years now. Usman started his career as a finance officer with the Board of Internal Revenue, Yenagoa, Bayelsa State in 2002.
He later joined the services of Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) as a Principal Accountant in Gusau and rose through the ranks to become Chief Accountant and Head of Department of Finance, NTA Katsina.
He is a professional member of the Association of National Accountants of Nigeria (ANAN) and specialises in financial accounting, taxation, financial management, and investment analysis.
Usman has participated in several financial conferences and workshops; recently, he participated in the 2020 Financial Reform Conference held in Abuja.
Governor Matawalle who vowed to revamp the education sector in the state implored the appointees to discharge their noble duties diligently, as he promises to give the new university all the required supports to meet the demands of new age and become a world-class university.
The appointees have been directed to report to the Directorate of Higher Education for briefings.