By Correspondent in Ibadan.
Barely four days to the election of a new Vice Chancellor of University of Ibadan, one of the leading contestants, Prof. Aderemi Raji-Oyelade, is said to have withdrawn from the race.
Our Correspondent gathered that sequel to this, an emergency Governing Council meeting has been slated for Monday morning,though without any agenda.
Similarly, the Joint Action Committee of the Unions had mobilised its members for an emergency meeting on Monday in what stakeholders in the issue described as sending signal to the council not to compromise the integrity of the process.
With Raji-Oyelade withdrawal from the race, the stage is set for the remaining 15 contestants, including the Acting Vice Chancellor, wherein only six of them will be selected for the Oct. 12 contest.
Earlier, some candidates had threatened massive boycott, if they found out that the integrity of the process is compromised.
The Reporters further gathered that the withdrawal of Oyelade from the race might not be unconnected with the reason stated above, even though he did not give any reason in the letter of withdrawal sent to the Chief John Odigie-Oyegun-led Council.
A source close to him said he withdrew from the race because of moral issue as he could not imagine himself being interviewed by two of the compromised likely Senate Representatives, name withheld.
The online publication recalls that only four of the 16 contestants appeared physically last week Monday during the town hall meeting organised by the joint Unions in the premier institution where they unfolded their vision plans to the UI Community.
As at press time, no one knows the agenda of the Governing Council emergency meeting but sources hinted that it will be on safeguarding the process as the council had vowed to protect its integrity.
According to the election time table released earlier, electronic voting holds on Tuesday, October 12, 2021, between 9 a.m and 12 noon.
The general mood within the university community is that,with the inclusion of these two allegedly compromised personalities as members of the Senate Representatives, the credibility and integrity of the new effort at electing new VC will be in doubt.
The stakeholders expressed optimism that irrespective of issues such as petitions and other issues requiring attention of the Governing Council of the university, it will produce a substantive Vice Chancellor by October 14, in line with its revised time table.
After the voting election on October 12, the screening to select six out of the remaining 15 contestants will hold on October 13.
The council will do the final selection of the six, interview them and ratify the appointment of a new Vice Chancellor on Oct. 14.
