According to the administration of Michael Okpara University of Agriculture in Umudike, Abia State, Professor Ursula Akanwa was not involved in the most recent hiring process.
Furthermore, contrary to what several job seekers claimed, the Vice Chancellor did not replace the names of employed individuals, according to the institution.
Monday, 127 former employees demanded that President Bola Tinubu step in, claiming that the institution’s administration fired them on July 15, 2026, despite their inclusion on the federal government’s list of employees for the agricultural university.
Employees who testified at the NUJ Press Centre in Umuahia asserted that university security personnel coerced them into giving up their appointment letters and identification cards.
On Tuesday, however, the university’s head of public relations and protocol, Anyaso Anyaso, denied the allegations, saying that the institution’s administration lacked permission to use GIFMIS, an information system maintained by the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation.
Anyaso shocked everyone by saying that 618 people got appointment letters, with 553 of them recorded on GIFMIS, and that the federal government had waived the requirement that the previous vice chancellor and his administration employ no more than 426 people.
According to him, this was done completely ignoring the order from the federal government that the positions be filled with only 426 people.
The administration of the university made it plain that the salary funds allocated could only be used for 426 legitimate employees. If someone were to take more than the allotted amount, how would the vice chancellor be able to pay?
Why? Because the government has already set aside funds for the exact amount it has stated as its desired goal.
“According to the instruction, we are obligated to remain committed to the one individual we desire,” Anyaso stated.