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The University of Ibadan, on Thursday,
announced the appointment of Isaac Folorunsho Adewole, a consultant
obstetrician and gynaecologist at the University College Hospital
(UCH), Ibadan, as the next Vice Chancellor of the institution.

The pro-chancellor and council chairman
of the premier university, Wole Olanipekun, announced the appointment
at a press briefing held at the council chambers of the institution
early yesterday.

According him, Mr Adewole, who is
expected to take over from the outgoing Vice-Chancellor, Olufemi
Bamiro, whose term expires on December 1, was rated best in all stages
of interviews conducted for the 12 candidates for the post. The
appointment concludes a process which began several months ago.

Describing the process that produced
the new Vice Chancellor as the best in the history of the university,
Mr Olanipekun noted that all the candidates for the post were subjected
to fair competition before Mr Adewole eventually emerged.

He maintained that, in the said
process, the management of the university fulfilled all portions of the
law governing the appointment of a Vice Chancellor.

According to him, despite the fact that
the Federal Executive Council (FEC) in Abuja was yet to come up with
the policy of 70 years retirement age for university professors, UI was
the first and the only institution in history that did not place an
form of embargo on candidates when it placed newspaper advertisements
to declare the seat of the Vice Chancellor of the institution vacant.

Besides, he said, at stages of the
interview, none of the candidates eligible to partake was shut out,
saying the process was the most transparent.

Transparent protest

The process, which started on February
25, when the council met and approved the placement of adverts in
newspapers to call for applications for the position, climaxed with the
final selection of the new VC by the selection committee on Wednesday,
September 1.

While reacting to a newspaper report
that there was some sort of crises in the process, Mr Olanipekun said
the speculation was not true, as the process has produced the best
performed among the candidates.

He informed that unlike in the past
when the selection committee would pick three names and forward them to
the university visitor, the president of the Federal Republic of
Nigeria, for appointment of one from amongst them, the new law has
bestowed the power to select just one among the contestants and send
same to the visitor for ratification.

Adewole’s name, he added, will soon be
sent to Goodluck Jonathan for ratification before Bamiro’s term
expires, in order not to have a vacuum in the administration of the
university.

Interaction with council

Before he was finally appointed, Mr
Adewole, together with the other 11, had an interaction with the
University Council at the council meeting held on August 20.

Six were then shortlisted for an
interview, from which the final thre names were presented for the
selection board were picked. The two other names besides Mr Adewole’s
were Francis Egbokhare of the Department of Linguistics, University of
Ibadan, and Friday Okonofua of the Department of Obstetrics and
Gynaecology, University of Benin.

Apart from being adjudged the best in the process, Mr Adewole, the
former provost of the College of Medicine, Ibadan, delivered, arguably,
the best presentation when all candidates for the post were gathered
for an interactive with members of the university community last month,
though Olanipekun noted that the programme was not part of the
selection process.