UNIJOS appoints Gray Ejikeme as acting Vice Chancellor

The Deputy Vice-Chancellor -Administration of the University of Jos (UNIJOS), Professor Gray Goziem Ejikeme, has emerged the new Acting Vice Chancellor of the institution.

Ejikeme replaces Professor Sebastian Maimako whose single five-year tenure expires next week.

Top Naija learnt that the Professor of Social Work and Clinical Psychology was appointed as the Acting Vice Chancellor on Friday at an emergency meeting set up by the University Senate.

A member of the Senate who confirmed Ejike’s appointment, disclosed to Top Naija in Jos on Friday that the need to get a new Vice Chancellor for the University became essential in order to avoid a leadership vacuum in the institution.

The source stated, “I was at the meeting. You know the tenure of the current VC will officially come to an end next week on June 22.

“Somehow, the University Governing Council has not resumed the process for the appointment of a new Vice-Chancellor for the University, which was stopped recently in controversial circumstances by the National Universities Commission after its commencement.

“A vacuum will be created in the leadership of the University with the exit of the outgoing VC. However, the law governing the University empowers the Senate to elect one of them as acting VC wherever a vacancy occurs pending the appointment of a substantive VC.

“So, this morning, the Senate met and elected Prof Greg Goziem Ejikeme as Acting VC who will take over at the expiration of the tenure of the incumbent. The election was open for all the professors in the University to contest, but he was preferred among others.”

Another Senate member who also confirmed the appointment of Ejike as Acting Vice Chancellor depicted the Abia State-born intellectual as a diligent and committed academics who has contributed a lot to the growth of the University and the country at large.

The Spokesperson of the University and Deputy Registrar, Information and Publications, Abdullahi Abdullahi, when contacted, refused to speak on the matter.