Staff and students of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife burst with excitement on Monday when the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of Governing Council of the institution, Dr Yemi Ogunbiyi announced the appointment of Professor Eyitope Ogunbodede as the Vice Chancellor of the university.
The new VC who is a professor of Dentistry in the Department of Preventive and Community Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, College of Health Sciences, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife is billed to resume duty next month.
Ogunbiyi explained that 18 candidates applied for the position when it was advertised and that the search committee got additional 4 candidates for the race. He said one of the candidates was disqualified and that 21 candidates contested for the position eventually.
While announcing the appointment of the new VC under a watertight security, the council chairman disclosed that the selection process followed due process and that Ogunbodede emerged as the best among the contenders.
There was a spontaneous jubilation within the OAU campus immediately the name of Ogunbodede was announced as the new VC.
The staff and students of the university demonstrated their love for Ogunbodede by jubilating.
In a brief remark, the new VC commended the council for the transparency in the selection process that produced him.
He sought the total supports of all stakeholders in the university to enable him succeed in his determination to take the university to greater heights
He promised to deploy efficient strategies to make OAU a world-class university that can compete with any university in the world.
“Henceforth this university will continue to move forward according to the university’s anthem which says: “forward ever, backward never,” he said.
Prior to the appointment of Ogunbodede, the university was headed by an acting Vice Chancellor, Professor Anthony Elujoba who was appointed last year after the expiration of the tenure of the immediate former Vice Chancellor, Professor Bamitale Omole.
