Leadership wrangles shake Lira varsity

Lira University has been plunged into a leadership crisis that has split senior management and drawn battle lines in WhatsApp groups and other informal fora.

The standoff at the 11‑year‑old institution stems from Vice Chancellor Prof Jasper Ogwal Okeng’s decision to handpick Senior University Librarian Dr Andrew Ojulong as acting vice chancellor, bypassing the Deputy Vice Chancellor in-charge of Academic Affairs, Associate Prof Okaka Opio Dokotum. Documents and investigations seen by this newspaper reveal that whenever the vice chancellor previously went on leave, he delegated authority to the deputy vice chancellor (Academic Affairs). This time, however, he appointed Dr Ojulong to act on his behalf “until further notice”, a decision the University Council revoked on May 29.

That same evening, Prof Ogwal Okeng fired back via WhatsApp, issuing an “important notice to Lira University staff” in which he openly challenged the council.

“It has come to my notice that the council has held a meeting where they have backed the illegality of removing Dr Andrew Ojulong from carrying out the assignment in the office of the vice chancellor,” he wrote. He added: “As far as I am concerned, l am urging all staff to disregard the illegal action of the council chair, and we should support Dr Andrew Ojulong in the assignment given by the vice chancellors.”

Dr Ojulong quickly replied: “Dear vice chancellor, thank you very much for your wise guidance, confidence and steadfast leadership. I sincerely appreciate the trust you have placed in me and the management oversight even while you are attending to your health. “Your encouragement strengthens my resolve to continue executing the responsibilities you have entrusted to me with utmost dedication, profound appreciation and respect. May the Almighty God restore your health and bless you.” To which the vice chancellor responded: “Thank you Andrew for your resolve. Those fellows have no authority to cause any changes in the university. Good night.”

A senior source at the institution wondered what this portends for the university. According to Section 40.1 of the Universities and Other Tertiary Institutions Act, the council is the supreme organ of the university. The Act states that, “. . . in the absence of the vice chancellor, the deputy in‑charge of Academic Affairs shall act.” “In the absence of the vice chancellor, the deputy vice chancellor (Academic Affairs) shall perform the functions of the vice chancellor. It is the law, and the council is supreme; we have a real crisis of leadership,” the source said.

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