The management of Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike (MOUAU) has defended Vice-Chancellor Prof. Ursula Ngozi Akanwa against claims she was involved in a contentious recruitment drive.
The university says the previous administration caused the crisis by hiring far more staff than the federal government approved.
Prof. Akanwa took office on March 1, 2026, after the recruitment exercise had already wrapped up, the institution insisted.
She played no role in supervising or influencing the hiring process, according to officials.
The federal government approved 426 positions, and the university's Governing Council backed this figure. The former management breached this limit by offering appointment letters to 618 people, the university disclosed.
Only 426 names made it onto the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS), the federal government's payroll platform. The additional 192 recruits fell outside the approved wage bill.
Addressing reporters in Umudike, Mr. Anyaso Anyaso, head of public relations and protocol, rejected suggestions that the current Vice-Chancellor was responsible.
He described such claims as deliberate misinformation designed to damage her standing.
"The Vice-Chancellor has repeatedly stated that the recruitment exercise, including payroll capture, had already been concluded before she assumed office," Anyaso told journalists. "Anyone seeking explanations should direct their enquiries to those who conducted the exercise."
The Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation handled the payroll capture, not the university, management clarified. This means MOUAU could not have removed anyone from the federal system.
The current administration has no power to alter the GIFMIS platform, officials stressed. Prof.
Akanwa lacks access to the system and cannot upload, delete, or modify employee records.
Some affected workers claimed they were recruited in February 2026 and began working without pay. During a meeting with university officials last week, their identity cards were collected and they received fresh letters labeling them as "surplus to needs."
The university denied dismissing any workers. Instead, it said it was simply enforcing the 426-position staffing quota approved by both the federal government and the Governing Council.
The current management inherited the fallout from hiring decisions made before Prof. Akanwa's appointment and shouldn't bear responsibility for those choices, the institution argued.
Official records vindicate the current team of any misconduct, it added.
University officials urged the public to ignore what they called false narratives aimed at attacking the Vice-Chancellor's reputation. They advised stakeholders to trust only official university statements and reject unverified claims spreading through the public domain.
