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From: Agaju Madugba, Katsina
A coalition of civil society organisations in Katsina State, has faulted the recent suspension of the Vice Chancellor of the Federal University (FUDMA), Dutsinma, Prof. Haruna Abdu Kaita.
Reports said that the Governing Board of the university suspended the Vice Chancellor on April 13, following a petition against him to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Speaking, in Katsina, on Tuesday, at a press conference on the issue, leader of the group, Muhammad Bashir Usman Ruwan Godiya, said the group suspected what he described a foul play in the saga and urged the Minister of Education to intervene and reverse the suspension.
The group said that it carried out an independent investigation into the matter alleging among other things that there has been a lingering misunderstanding between the embattled Vice Chancellor and the pro-Chancellor of the university, Dr. Marliyya Zayyan, regretting further that Kaita was not given a fair hearing before he was suspended.
It also alleged that the Vice Chancellor was not given fair hearing to respond to allegations against him before he was suspended.
According to Godiya, “our investigations showed allegations of abuse of powers labeled against the Pro-Chancellor that she was exercising powers beyond her limits as enshrined in the relevant regulations and on that basis she resorted to conniving with some principal officers of the university and wrote the petition against the Vice Chancellor which culminated to his suspension from office.
“For the sake of fair hearing, civil society organizations in Katsina State had called on the Pro-Chancellor for her to respond to the allegations before writing this report, but she refused to respond. And the Governing Council that took the decision of suspending the Vice Chancellor was illegally constituted.
“There were also a lot of financial misconduct against the former administration, hence, the continuous plot and sabotage to whatever the VC is doing to address the challenges facing the university.
“Our prayers however are that the Hon. Minister be invited to note the need to investigate the process through which the Vice Chancellor was suspended and the need to immediately reverse the suspension.”
