Prof. Edoba Omoregie of the Faculty of Law on Monday assumed office as the 11th substantive Vice-Chancellor of the University of Benin.
In his inaugural speech, Omoregie pledged to revolutionise the university and create an environment where students, faculty, and staff feel valued and supported in their academic and career pursuits.
The professor of Private Property Law, who took over from Prof. Lilian Salami, expressed optimism that innovative funding, prioritising access to public university education, infrastructural development, and improved staff welfare could help rejuvenate the system.
He said, “What I will try to do is to revolutionise the school and create an environment where all students can learn and staff can get to the pinnacle of their career.
“I shall provide you with all the necessary support to make this a reality. Also, my administration would prioritise the welfare of students and staff.”
While acknowledging the challenges facing the Nigerian public university system, which includes dwindling public funding and frequent disruptions through strikes, he, however, expressed optimism that innovative funding, prioritising access to public university education, infrastructural development, and improved staff welfare, could help rejuvenate the system.
He commended the Federal Government’s efforts to provide access to university education through the Nigeria Education Loan Fund and the Tertiary Education Trust Fund for their support of infrastructure.
He, however, appealed to the TETFUND to continue its support for the university.
As an alumnus of the university, Omoregie pledged to mobilise the alumni body to play a vanguard role in advancing the institution. He praised his predecessor for her excellent service to the university and described her tenure as successful.
In her speech, outgoing VC, Salami, who was the second female vice chancellor of the university, said she was able to deliver on the nine-point agenda set when she assumed office in 2019.
She said she was able to significantly improve infrastructure facilities in the institution despite the challenges posed by the paucity of funds, the outbreak of COVID-19, and the incessant industrial actions.
She added, “For instance, the ratio of non-teaching staff to teaching staff was abysmally low when we came. We were able to train and deploy non-academics to fill the gaps. We would have achieved better if the Federal Government lifted the embargo on employment.”
She said that she was able to improve the ranking of the university while applauding the federal government and the Edo government for their support.
She urged the university community to extend more support to her successor for her to succeed. (PUNCH)
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