Don Decries Detrimental use of the Federal Character Principle

Dr. Omojola Awosusi, former Registrar, Ekiti State University, Ado-Ekiti, has advised the Federal Government to de-emphasize the concept of the son of the soil in the appointment of employees into the university system. He decried that the detrimental use of the Federal character principle should be discontinued to enhance meritocracy.

He criticized a situation where a state of origin is being used for admission of students into Nigerian Universities and charged the government with expanding infrastructural space that would enable students with disabilities to be enrolled. He made this statement during the 8th Lecture Series of the Redeemer's University Registry Annual Workshop held at the South Atlantic Petroleum Auditorium, Faculty of Engineering of the university, recently.

Similarly, the former Vice-Chancellor, University of Ibadan, Emeritus Professor Olufemi Bamiro, has called on local universities to proffer local solutions to national problems and advised them to influence what goes on in their national development strategies.

Professor Bamiro stated that helping to translate new knowledge and evidence into policy for national governments should be a key priority for universities if they want to address the sustainable development goals, adding that the significant challenges in Africa when tackling issues such as health, education, and climate change was substantial, but where most of the relevant research was done by academics in the US or the UK.

Meanwhile, the Registrar, Redeemer's University, Mr. Olukayode Akindele, has reiterated the need for effective leadership in Nigerian institutions as very important to the system's success.

He stated that leadership is not about a glorious crowning act. Still, it is about keeping your team focused on the goal and motivating them to do their best to achieve it, especially when the stakes are high and the consequences matter. He added that leadership is about laying the groundwork for others' success and then standing back to let them shine.