A major leadership crisis has erupted at the University of Abuja (UniAbuja) now known as Yakubu Gowon University, following the appointment of Prof Hakeem Fawehinmi as the new Vice-Chancellor last month, amid allegations that the Governing Council violated the advertised requirements for the position.

The controversy has sparked intense legal, regulatory and institutional scrutiny, with stakeholders warning that the process may have breached established academic and administrative standards.

The university’s vacancy announcement had clearly stipulated possession of a Ph.D. as a mandatory requirement for applicants, in line with National Universities Commission (NUC) regulations and long-standing university governance norms.

However, the newly appointed VC reportedly holds a Fellowship certification rather than a doctoral degree, an equivalent claim that has been rejected by recent judicial pronouncements.

A senior education law expert, who reviewed the documentation on the basis of anonymity, said the issue was not ambiguous “Once a Governing Council departs from its own advertised requirements, the appointment automatically becomes vulnerable to judicial nullification. Compliance is not optional; it is mandatory,” the analyst said.

A statement by a group under the auspices, Concerned Alumni Stakeholders, University of Abuja, Worldwide, noted that the crisis intensified following a National Industrial Court ruling in a related case involving the Nigerian Association of Medical and Dental Academics (NAMDA), which held that a Fellowship cannot be regarded as the equivalent of a Ph.D. for academic or administrative appointments in Nigerian universities.