FG to constitute Governing Councils of varsities soon – NUC

Chris Maiyaki, the secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC), has said that the federal government is working to reconstitute the governing councils of universities.

Maiyaki, who spoke to education correspondents on Wednesday in Abuja, said the Minister of Education has put in place a panel to work on the list, and the councils would be inaugurated once the list is concluded.

This was in response to the two-week ultimatum issued by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) for the government to reconstitute the governing councils of public universities.

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“To reconstitute the councils of 61 universities is not a small feat. Government is working to ensure that people who are qualified and with the right pedigree are put in those councils,” Maiyaki said.

The executive secretary agreed that the absence of governing councils for public universities was slowing down the administration of the universities, he thereby appealed to the leadership of ASUU to be patient with the government during the period.

Recall that the NUC had on June 22, 2023, announced the dissolution of governing councils of all federal universities and boards of other agencies and parastatals in the country.

The NUC directive was based on a similar one three days earlier by President Bola Tinubu ordering the dissolution of the boards of all government parastatals, agencies, and companies.