Embattled and sacked 7th Vice-Chancellor of Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka (UNIZIK), Professor Benard Odoh has instituted legal actions against the management of Federal University, Gusau (FUGUS) over alleged denial of his professorial appointment and employment status.
In a statement on Wednesday, signed by his Personal Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mr Charles Otu, he said Odoh instituted the legal action at the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN), with suit number NICN/ ABJ/ 434/ 2024.
He said, though no date has been fixed for the hearing, Odoh will leave no stone unturned to seek legal redress in a court of competent jurisdiction “on the very weighty and damaging allegations against his person and unblemished records, accusing the management of being in league with politicians to nail and pitch him not just against the academic community, but the rest of Nigeria and the world.”
The statement read: “In the past seventy-two hours or more, the print, broadcast and social media outlets have been flooded with reports emanating from a press conference addressed by the Vice-Chancellor of Federal University, Gusau, Professor Muazu Abubakar, wherein he claimed that the embattled Vice-Chancellor of Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Professor Benard Odoh, was never in the employment of the university and neither was he a tenured professor at the institution.
“He also went further to allege that, “all documents pertaining to Odoh’s claims were fraudulently obtained through administrative fraud working in cahoots with the Registrar and the former Vice-Chancellor of the University”.
“In other words, one strongly suspects that those desperate to rid Odoh out of office and perhaps, further cause him public shame, ridicule and embarrassment are now even more desperate to damage and utterly destroy his academic, social and political reputations in what obviously could be understood as a deliberately orchestrated and mafiaso media trial, similar to what happened to the former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Walter Onnoghen, who has now been eventually washed clean by the Court. The sad bane of Nigerian media trial is that once a person’s reputation has been tarnished, it is hardly ever restored even if finally cleared by the courts. This is why we call for diligent checks, confirmations and the professional ensuring of balanced reportage by the Nigerian mass media in this matter.
“In one tone, the management of the institution sounded as though they had a grouse and scores to settle with the pioneer administration led by the former Vice-Chancellor, Professor P. O. Okeke, who employed Odoh, including the pioneer Registrar of FUGUS, Ibrahim Bawa Kaura. In another breath, they sounded like some academic or intellectual ‘terrorists’ who were under intense pressure to achieve a determined end with a perfected script handed over to them; all, desperately desirous to nail Professor Odoh and pitch him not just against the academic community but the rest of Nigeria and the world.”
He added: “All these are pathetically strange and having carefully painted the above background, it is therefore now trite that the following posers and observations are made before the general public, even as he shall leave no stone unturned to seek legal redress in a court of competent jurisdiction on these very weighty and damaging allegations against his person and unblemished records.
