The management of Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike (MOUAU), has clarified that its newly appointed Vice-Chancellor, Professor Ursula Ngozi Akanwa, had no involvement in the institution’s recent staff recruitment exercise.
In a statement signed by the Head of Public Relations and Protocol, Anyaso Anyaso, the university explained that the recruitment process, including the capture of successful applicants for payroll, had been completed before March 1, 2026, when Professor Akanwa assumed office as the university’s seventh Vice-Chancellor.
According to the statement, the Federal Government approved a waiver for the recruitment of 426 staff, a figure that was also ratified by the University’s Governing Council.
However, appointment letters were issued to 618 individuals, while 553 names were captured on the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS). The university noted that the system eventually uploaded only the 426 positions approved by both the Federal Government and the Governing Council.
The management further stated that the Vice-Chancellor has no access to the GIFMIS platform and therefore has no authority to add, remove, or alter names on the payroll.
MOUAU urged members of the public and stakeholders to disregard what it described as misleading claims linking Professor Akanwa to the recruitment exercise, stressing that only official university communication channels should be relied upon for accurate and verified information.
The university reaffirmed its commitment to transparency, accountability, and due process, while calling on the public to refrain from spreading unverified reports capable of causing unnecessary confusion.
