By correspondent.
The outgoing Vice-Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University, Prof Kabiru Bala, says it is a thing of joy for him to leave the stage peacefully after serving the premier institution for five years.
This is contained in a statement from Public Affairs Directorate,
Office of the Vice-Chancellor, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria and a copy available to The Reporters on Saturday in Lokoja.
He said:”I have every reason to be thankful to God as I am leaving Ahmadu Bello University gracefully as Vice-Chancellor. I met ABU peacefully and I am leaving it peacefully”, the outgoing VC said.
He was responding to questions by journalists who had asked for his comments on the five years he held sway as Vice-Chancellor of one of the largest universities in Africa.
Prof Bala’s tenure is coming to an end on 30th April, 2025. He will be succeeded by Prof Adamu Ahmed whose appointment was approved last February by Ahmadu Bello University Governing Council.
Bala told journalists that the university was able to make headway under his watch largely due to the tremendous peace enjoyed and enormous goodwill from the university community.
This was in spite of the daunting challenges he was confronted with soon upon assumption of office, according to him.
He fingered the national lockdown arising from the COVID – 19 pandemic and closure of the public universities due to the prolonged nationwide strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
The Vice-Chancellor was also quick to point out other challenges that included the electricity crisis and the garnishee order, leading to the loss of over N2.5 billion belonging to the university.
“However, despite all these challenges we were able to make headway. The university enjoyed a great deal of peace, as there were no unrests either on the part of students or staff”, he said.
Prof Bala also explained that he and his team worked hard to enhance ABU’s academic excellence through teaching, research, and community service.
Bala expressed satisfaction with the number of graduates the university was producing every academic session since his appointment as the Vice-Chancellor.
He recalled that at one academic session a total of over 38,000 graduates were churned out.
The Vice-Chancellor attributed the success partly to the special resit examination introduced to help reduce the number of the spillover students.
He said that his greatest dream was to see Ahmadu Bello University win a Nobel Prize, stressing that with time the university would get there given its hardworking and brilliant scientists and other scholars.
Prof Bala also explained that it was his desire to see the provision of good working facilities for staff and good hostels for students.
