Lawmakers raise alarm as 3,000 staff exit Nigerian universities, urge immediate recruitment

ABUJA – The House of Representatives Committee on University Education has sounded the alarm over a critical brain drain in the nation’s universities, citing the mass exodus of academic and non-academic staff without replacement.

The committee’s chairman, Rep. Abubakar Fulata (APC-Jigawa), issued the warning in Abuja following an oversight visit to several universities in the South-East. He described the situation as “dangerous” for the education sector.

According to Rep. Fulata, authorities at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), disclosed that over 3,000 staff members have left the institution since 2019 due to retirement, resignation, or death. Despite these losses, permission has been granted to fill only about 500 positions.

“It is not healthy for the university system to have about 3,000 people leave and only have permission to recruit just about 500,” Fulata stated. He appealed to university governing councils, the Ministry of Education, and other relevant bodies to ensure vacancies are filled promptly to maintain smooth operations.

Furthermore, the lawmaker criticized universities for their “low compliance rate” with the federal character principles in staff appointments and recruitment. He urged both established and new universities to correct these anomalies to ensure equitable representation.

The 10th House of Representatives, he affirmed, is committed to improving educational standards, with the oversight visits intended to assess the true state of the universities.

About The Author

Dele Fashomi

Dele Fashomi, seasoned journalist and communication teacher, is a holder of Master of Arts degree in Communication and Language Arts from the University of Ibadan in 1992/93.

Earlier, he had bagged a Bachelor degree from the same university in 1984, after which he proceeded to the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Lagos, in 1990, for a postgraduate diploma in Journalism.

He had done many courses in communication, including the EU-BBC Editing Course in 2002.

Mr. Fashomi combines effectively the practice, research and teaching of communication. And to date, he has published two academic works in communication: Issues in Communication Technology and Policy (2010) and Economic and Social Issues in Advertising and PR (2013).

He had his first break in the Nigerian media in Concord Newspapers in 1990 and today, he has over two and half decades experience earned in several newspapers.

He has been part of many start-ups, such as The Republic (1987), The Comet (1999), The Anchor 2001 – 2002; Sun Newspapers (2003); Westerner newsmagazine (2005 – 2010) as Editor; National Life (2011) as Sunday Editor, and Newswatch Newspapers (2012- 2016) as Daily Editor.

Dele Fashomi is now the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Newstide247.com newspaper online, which he started in July 2015. He is also into biography writing, with many books in his trail, some of which he wrote alone and one he co- authored with his mentor, Mr Dare Babarinsa, entitled: Olabiyi Durojaiye – DARE TO BE DiFFERENT. He also guided and collaborated with Pa Olatunji Odusanya in writing his autobiography – AGAINST ALL ODDS. There are many other books in the works under his pen.

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