By Toun Alabi (An investigative Journalist)
Yesterday, another mischievous report, titled: “INSIDER: FUOYE Senate Wants Pro-Chancellor Victor Ndoma-Egba Removed for Protecting VC Fasina Who Sexually Harassed Employee” , found its way out of the questionable news outlet of the so-called Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ). The embarrassing report, as usual, contains illogical, sensational and untrue claims, particularly on the allegations that the Senate of the Federal University Oye-Ekiti (FUOYE) was pushing for the removal of the chairman of the University’s Governing Council, Senator Victor Ndoma Egba (SAN). The reporter of the controversial piece, identified as Sodeeq Atanda, tried feebly and unsuccessfully to pull the wool over the face of his readers that the Senate of the Nigeria’s fourth most subscribed University, are pushing for the removal of Mr. Ndoma Egba as FUOYE’s Pro-chancellor/ chairman of the Governing Council, by publishing a fake letter purported to have been co-written and signed by the said Senate members, but alas! There is no evidence of such signatures of the said members of the Senate of FUOYE on the published fake letter!.
The foregoing findings clearly rendered that purported letter invalid and certified its contents as untrue, unfounded and grossly fictitious.
Reading the above titled ill-fated publication of FIJ between the lines, one discovers to his chargrin, the writer’s mischief in certain claims that clearly contradict the contents in some other documents he published, claiming are written by the Acting Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Olubunmi Shittu and Senator Ndoma Egba.
Most obvious of these inconsistencies is his claim that the Acting VC alleged that the Council chairman mandated him to withdraw the new appointments of two officers of the University, which are the Procurement Officer and the Director of the institute of Part Time. Unfortunately, in the same document the confused FIJ reporter published as the Acting VC’s speech on the floor of the Senate, to substantiate his claim, the Acting VC had only mentioned the office of Procurement Officer as the only appointment the Council chairman urged him to retain and that too has been for very cogent reasons of sustained handling of important projects for the proper running of the system (according to these published letters).
Again, the FIJ as a news outlet exposed its usual display of poor journalism resulting in yellow journalism, especially in reporting alleged happenings in FUOYE, when it claimed in that ill-fated report that the Senate under the chairmanship of the Acting VC has planned to address a press conference and that such press conference was to disclose to the public the council chairman and substantive Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Abayomi Sunday Fasina ‘s alleged sins, one of which was an alleged victimisation of Mrs. Folasade Adebayo. Truth is that the Senate had passed a Vote of Confidence in Prof. Fasina on the allegation of sexual harassment involving Mrs. Adebayo, (this was widely reported), thereafter the probe panel set up by the Council had also resolved the issues surrounding issues of this same allegation against Prof. Fasina. While both the Engr Kayode Ojo (immediate past Council chairman) led Governing Council and the current Senator Ndoma Egba led Council had looked into the sexual harrasment allegations and duly exonerated Prof. Fasina, other cogent points include the fact that, one, Mrs. Adebayo never indicated in her petition on official issues between her and Prof. Fasina (written to the University Governing Council) that she was sexually harassed by the substantive Vice-Chancellor. Besides, Mrs. Adebayo herself, had earlier stated categorically in her statement with the Nigerian Police during the probe of the case, that she was never sexually harassed by Prof. Fasina. (Some section of the media including FIJ were the ones spreading the fake news of such allegations of sexual harassment based on mischievous and false Communique allegedly handed them by the University’s local leadership of SSANU). Even, the Communique from the local branch of SSANU on the foregoing issue were of two different versions. The one submitted to the University Council didn’t contain sexual harassment allegation against Prof. Fasina, (because they know there is no proof for this beyond any reasonable doubt). But the other version of its Communique in November, 2024, FUOYE SSANU had made available to some section of the media, mischievously contain the sexual harassment allegation and this was mainly done to kick start a deliberate and heinous media trial against Prof. Fasina. The report of the Council ‘s probe panel which was made public few months ago had resolved all the issues on Mrs. Adebayo and FUOYE SSANU’s leaders’ gross misconduct against the system. Appropriate sanctions, though understandably lenient, were meted out to them in line with the Regulations of the University. Prof. Fasina, having been served a clean bill of health on the matter by the Council ‘s probe panel, had dragged Mrs. Adebayo and the recalcitrant news outlets (Sahara Reporters and FIJ) that defamed him to Court. It is expected that the media would allow the matter to rest as it is subjudice to continue to report it, but unfortunately, because of FIJ’s vested interest and unprofessional handling of its so-called investigative journalism, it defied ethical norms in journalism and revisited the issue and misled the public again in its evil report of yesterday.
Unfortunately and tragically for FIJ, the truth cannot be hidden. No Senate member of the University is pushing for the removal of her Pro-chancellor and chairman of Governing Council. If that had happened, there would have been an address of the media by all members of the Senate of the University, led of course, by the Acting Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Olubunmi Shittu, who is the statutory chairman of Senate, these members would have presented themselves before the media, the television stations would have broadcast them and the print journalists in all national dailes would have also reported the development, parading their pictures for the world to see. It would have been the biggest news in town ! But that did not happen. In fact, the Public Relations Officer of FUOYE, Mr. Foluso Ogunmodede, had on behalf of the management of the University, had instead, issued a press statement stating the truth that there is no friction whatsoever between the Acting VC and Prof. Fasina and that new appointments were solely handled y the Acting VC and his team and that all new officers have resumed their duties. All is well at FUOYE. But what we have FIJ, as usual, do is to act the script of some unscrupulous elements paying their bills secretly to publish falsehood on FUOYE just to disrupt the on going transition process of electing the next substantive Vice-Chancellor of the University. The interesting thing is that, this charade by the FIJ is a familiar terrain. The ill-fated news outlet is merely playing to the gallery again and exposing itself as another agent of distabilization against FUOYE like Sahara Reporters. It is their stock in trade, this is indeed sad and pathetic.
The allegations reported as alleged concerns of Senate members on issues surrounding new appointments, adverts on vacant positions of principal officers, and the office of the Vice-Chancellor, citing in particular 7 or 8 years as criteria for eligibility are mere insinuations from political gladiators in the system who have sponsored FIJ to write the ill-fated report just to cause disinfection against the dutiful and meticulous Pro-chancellor and chairman of Governing Council of the University, Senator Ndoma Egba and substantive Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Abayomi Sunday Fasina. The Governing Council as the highest administrative Authority of the University, representing the Federal Government which is the employer of all staff of the University, has the autonomy to decide what criteria to set for appointing new VC based on the peculiarities obtainable in the system. The collective decision of the Council is binding, it is never a sole decision of the chairman alone. The decision was arrived at after thorough deliberations by equally sound minded and cerebral members of the Governing Council who have equally put in long years of meritorious service to the nation and have been deemed fit and well deserving to be appointed to represent the Federal Government in administering the University. So, questioning the appropriateness of their collective decision in fixing 10 years for criteria for FUOYE’s next VC is mischievous and embarrassing. Truth is that the FUOYE Council has merely followed procedure already approved by the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa in a bid to ensure sanity in the system. Besides, FUOYE recently added to her comity of Professors, over 100 of them, courtesy of responsive leadership provided by Prof. Fasina before he went on leave in the U.S. This laudable development has increased the number of her Professors tremendously. In such a peculiar situation, it is expected that the criteria for the number one academic officer/CEO of the University would be highly competitive.
The sponsors of FIJ publication further exposed their shenanigan mannerism in dabbling into extraneous matters such as allegations of N900,000, 000,000 staff housing units, Prof. Fasina’s accumulated and research leave in the U.S, Education Minister’s response to SSANU’s purported letter and protest by some disgruntled elements against the system and allegations of imposition of candidates by chairman of Governing Council and Prof. Fasina among others. Such diversionary tactics betray their political witch-hunt, and exposed these sponsors of the FIJ ill-fated publication as some unscrupulous elements who have been disappointed and defeated in a system strictly run on legitimate procedural tenets and they are now bad losers, hell -bent on disrupting the on going smooth and legitimate process of the VCship race in FUOYE. They forget that the system will, as usual, not compromise on merit. It was merit against all odds, that brought Prof. Fasina as fourth substantive Vice-Chancellor of the University in 2021. These familiar enemies tried their best to disrupt the system and the process to favour their ill-fated selfish and inglorious agenda to grab power by all illegitimate means possible during the VCship race prior to Prof. Fasina’s emergence, they failed woefully. They will fail woefully again this time and FUOYE will surely have the best among the lot to emerge as her next Vice-Chancellor.
For the umpteenth time, FIJ is strongly advised to dissipate its energy on defending itself on myriad of legal battles it is facing over defamatory.and predatory publications, including the on going case Prof. Fasina has filed against it at the Ekiti State High Court and stop this charade it is calling investigative Journalism.
