UNILAG registrar apologises for stalling Senate emergency meeting

The Registrar of the University of Lagos (UNILAG), Oladejo Azeez, has apologised for the role he played in locking out members of the Senate from the emergency meeting of the body on August 24, 2020.

He made this known in a letter addressed to all Senate members released on Monday.

“I hereby tender my unreserved apology to the esteemed members of the Senate of the University of Lagos on the role I played in the unintended locking out of members of the senate during the Emergency meeting held on Monday, August 24, 2020,” he said.

He said he has respect for the Senate as an institution as well as the individual members in their respective capacities.

“Having come to the realisation that my action must have offended Senate members, I hereby apologise to all Senate members,” he said.

Mr Azeez assured the Senate that he remained loyal and committed to the Senate and management of the university.

Background

PREMIUM TIMES reported when the emergency meeting was scheduled for Monday, August 24, 2020.

More than 140 professors signed for the convocation of the meeting, which was already more than half of the Senate’s roughly 230 members and four times more than the required 25 to convene such meetings.

The Senate meeting was one of the decisions contained in the federal government’s recommendations aimed at addressing the crisis which was rocking the university at the time.

The meeting, however, was almost stalled by a directive from the registrar that no auditorium should be made available for the members to use for their meeting.

According to the Vanguard, the memo was dated August 24, 2020, and directed to the Head, Auditoria Management Unit, J. F Ade-Ajayi Auditorium.

The memo, titled “Re: Notice to Senate Meetings” directed the Auditoria Management Unit not to make any auditorium available for the members of the Senate.

“This is to inform all Senate members that no meeting of the Senate has been summoned. Members should await proper Notice of Meeting after the Federal Government of Nigeria has clarified some issues germane to the meeting.

“It follows that you are not to make any of your facilities available for any meeting until otherwise advised,” he said.

However, despite the memo, members of the Senate were allowed in when workers in charge of the auditorium later opened the place.