The immediate past Vice-Chancellor of Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike (MOUAU), Prof. Maduebibisi Ofo Iwe, has defended the university’s 2025/2026 recruitment exercise, insisting that the employment process was conducted in line with due process and within the approval granted by the Federal Government.
In a press statement signed by his Media Aide, Chidiamara G. Uzoh, Prof. Iwe dismissed allegations surrounding the recruitment exercise, describing attempts to implicate him as acts of blackmail, pettiness and misinformation.
The former Vice-Chancellor explained that the recruitment exercise began under his administration following the Federal Government’s approval for the university to recruit 426 staff after years of employment embargo that had left significant vacancies in the institution.
According to the statement, the Federal Government’s embargo on employment in universities, introduced in 2019, created severe manpower shortages as retiring, deceased and relocated staff could not be replaced despite increasing student enrolment.
Prof. Iwe stated that his administration secured about ₦7 billion in personnel budget for 2024 and 2025 to accommodate nearly 1,000 identified vacant positions in the university. He added that the recruitment process followed all required procedures, including advertisement of vacancies in newspapers, shortlisting of candidates, interviews and biometric capture.
The statement noted that the process was still ongoing when Prof. Iwe handed over office on February 28, 2026, arguing that it was the responsibility of the succeeding administration to conclude the exercise since administration is a continuum.
The former Vice-Chancellor further maintained that the list of successful candidates for the approved 426 positions had already been compiled and submitted in December 2025, while additional consultations continued in January and February 2026 to accommodate the interests of critical stakeholders in the overall interest of the university.
Prof. Iwe also rejected claims that the current Vice-Chancellor was not involved in the recruitment exercise. He stated that, as Deputy Vice-Chancellor at the time, she served on the interview panel, participated in the interview sessions and took part in both Management and Governing Council deliberations on the recruitment process.
He maintained that all members of the Governing Council and Management participated in decisions relating to the recruitment, insisting that documentary evidence exists to support the claim.
While reaffirming his commitment to transparency and accountability during his tenure, Prof. Iwe said he is prepared to present his records before any Presidential Visitation Panel whenever one is constituted.
He urged the public not to be swayed by what he described as attempts to rewrite the history of the recruitment exercise, insisting that the facts would ultimately prevail.
It could also be recalled that the Media Team of the ex vice chancellor, last week, issued a press statement refuting allegations of financial and administrative mismanagement levelled against the immediate past VC, describing them as false, misleading and a deliberate attempt to tarnish the reputation of Prof Maduebibisi Iwe.
The team while reacting to online reports linking the purported suspension of the university’s Registrar and Bursar by the Governing Council to alleged irregularities during Prof. Iwe’s tenure, insisted that such reports were baseless and sponsored.
According to the statement, the issues raised were based on the 2021–2022 audit query, which it said had already been adequately addressed by Prof. Iwe through media engagements, submissions to relevant government authorities and several meetings with members of the university community.
The media team maintained that the former Vice-Chancellor’s administration was never investigated or indicted by any government-constituted panel throughout its five-year tenure. It contrasted this with a previous administration that was reportedly investigated by Ministerial and Presidential Visitation Panels, alleging that the current Governing Council had failed to implement the directives contained in the White Paper issued by the Visitor to the University.
It further stated that due process, accountability and prudent management of resources were hallmarks of Prof. Iwe’s administration, adding that no member of his management team had been found culpable by any investigative body.
The statement also described the recently constituted administrative panel set up to examine the implementation of Governing Council decisions between July 2024 and February 2026 as a “targeted witch-hunt” rather than a genuine accountability exercise.
The media team accused the Governing Council of concentrating on actions that allegedly undermine the progress made under the previous administration instead of attracting new facilities and development projects to the institution.
Reaffirming confidence in Prof. Iwe’s stewardship, the statement said his achievements in infrastructure, academics, administration and institutional development had been well documented and remained visible across the university.
It added that the former Vice-Chancellor was willing to appear before any properly constituted Presidential Visitation Panel to present a comprehensive financial, academic and administrative report of his tenure, supported by relevant documents.
The media team urged members of the public, university staff, students and alumni to disregard what it described as malicious reports aimed at damaging the reputation of the former Vice-Chancellor, insisting that his contributions significantly transformed the academic, economic, social and spiritual landscape of the institution during his five years in office.
