Buea University:

Race for Nalova Lyonga’s job enters final sprint

-Prof. Nol Alembong tipped as favorite. Professors EpahFonkeng, Horace Ngomo, Julius Victor Ngoh and George Elambo Nkeng also seriously considered

By a correspondent in Buea

Nalova Lyonga

Information reaching our newsroom has it that Professor NolAlembong has been earmarked by Yaounde authorities to succeed NalovaLyonga as Vice Chancellor of the Buea University. Dr. NalovaLyonga is expected to go on  retirement after she recently attained the statutory retirement age.

                Prof. Alembong was picked in preference to his fellow Lebialem brother, Professor EpahFonkeng (DVC/ in charge of Research and Cooperation at UB) and Ndian candidate Professor Horace Ngomo, who is the sitting Secretary General in the Ministry of Higher Education.

                Other names also linked with a move to UB as VC are Prof. Julius Victor Ngoh and Prof. Nkeng George Elambo. But sources at the MINESUP say it is unlikely Prof. Ngoh will be sent back to UB especially given that his long years as lecturer and later DVC there were marked by unending controversies with his colleagues. “Prof. Ngoh’s coming to Buea may only ignite another spate of recurrent teachers’ strikes this because he is considered by his colleagues at UB as a stool pigeon of the  regime. Ngoh is presently one of the DVCs of the University of Bamenda

                As for Prof. NkengElambo our sources said he is credited with a marvelous job as Director of the public works school in Yaounde and the authorities may want him to stay put and implant the new status recently given to that school by President Biya. Also any appointment of Prof. Nkeng as VC may only spell doom for his fellow brother from Manyu, Prof. Ako Edward, who is also credited with a good job at the Maroua University. 

                Prof. Alembong, a specialist of Oral Literature and friend of outgoing VC, Dr. NalovaLyonga is since 2012 the Dean of the Faculty of Arts at UB. He is due retirement in 2019.

                However, sources at UB note that Prof. Alembong’s stay at ‘the place to be’ has been mired with controversy with his colleagues in the Faculty of Arts.      Although most university teachers who were contacted expressed shock and refused to speak, an executive member of SYNES-UB chapter who accepted to speak though on condition of anonymity was very passionate. "The appointment of the professor will not cleanse the already acrimonious atmosphere in the Faculty of Arts and the University at large", he said.

                The don, in a surprisingly composed manner castigated "any attempt by the Government to completely destroy the University of Buea by appointing NolAlembong to finish the destruction he began four years ago.” He went on to point out that some colleagues were about to sue the Prof. for destroying their careers - lying against them and causing them to appear before a disciplinary panel just to find that the charges were false; confiscating the promotion file of a junior colleague, Dr. Njume Emmanuel EkindeSone and delaying his promotion and consequently reducing his benefits by one year.

                The SYNES member equally called for CONAC to audit Faculty accounts so that a clear picture of the accounts can be brought out.

                Other lecturers in the faculty we spoke to said that they had not received their bonuses for three years - extra hours, leave allowance, supervision of MA theses and defences although the Government had paid all subventions. He wondered where all that money had gone to when Government had paid the faculty's subsidies in full.

                Other SYNES executives Dr. James Abangma (SYNES-UB President) declined to speak officially until he had consulted his executive and advisers and that this will come soon.

                The Median learned that the dossier for the appointment of new VCs of Universities was lying on the table of the ASG of the Presidency, Prof. Peter AgborTabi (RIP) before his untimely death in April this year. A source at the MINESUP told us that when AgborTabi’s death was anoounced the sitting Minister of Higher Education exclaimed ekiehh!, saying that the dossier for the appointment of rectors was on AgborTabi’s table and it would now lie fallow.  The file has however been picked up again and the appointments would be made sooner than later, we learned.

                Meanwhile, SYNES has continued to engage the Government to respect the statutes of the Anglo-saxon University of Buea which prescribe a clear procedure for chosing principal academic officers of the institution.