A Media Consultant and analyst, Abubakar Yusuf, has urged both federal and state governments not to allow the period of strikes in the Nigerian universities to affect the tenure of Vice Chancellors, saying that if included, it would affect performance of the university administrators.

Yusuf made this observation against the background of lingering strikes by university lecturers, stating that the National University’s Commission (NUC), Federal Ministry of Education should reconsider the five-year, one term of Vice Chancellors in the federal universities to enable them render good leadership.

“In the last seven months, University Vice Chancellors are left redundant for a situation not created by them, government should consider additional two years for university leadership to enable them carry out people-oriented administration,” Yusuf said.

“This is very significant in the lives of any university, especially those with good leadership, so as to carry out their statutory job.

“Some Vice Chancellors have continued with minor and major academic works, held convocations while the school and lecturers are on strike. This has portrayed the level of their commitment to duty,” he added.

He argued that his call has nothing to do with tenure extension, but based purely on merit and hard work as well as dedication to duty.

“We should allow Nigerian universities to exhaust the wealth of experience of their Vice Chancellors to the fullest, rather than being subsumed under a situation that was created, designed and executed by them,” he submitted.