By joshua Professor Fasina: A Well-Deserved Ambassadorial Nomination
By Joseph Andrew
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu (PBAT) recently nominated the immediate past Vice Chancellor (VC) of Federal University Oye-Ekiti FUOYE), Professor Sunday Abayomi Fasina, to the Senate for appointment as a non-career ambassador/high commissioner. The nomination was contained in a letter Tinubu addressed to the Senate President, Senator Godswill Akpabio, seeking the confirmation of Professor Fasina by the Red Chamber in line with constitutional provisions governing diplomatic appointments.
Following the reading of the letter, on the Senate, Senator Akpabio referred the nomination to the Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs for screening and further legislative action. The committee was mandated to conduct the necessary scrutiny of the nominee and submit its report to the Senate for a final confirmation vote by the legislators.
The nomination of Fasina, an erudite professor of soil science, for ambassadorial position did not come to many as a surprise. It was widely seen as a welcome development by those who know his capacity and are confident that he will make a significant impact in the assignment, given his wealth of experience spanning pedological research, academic administration, international agricultural development, and institutional governance.
Even as some self-serving individuals and mischief makers continue to amplify baseless allegations of sexual harassment against Professor Fasina, the nomination has been generally described by discerning Nigerians as well-deserved, meritorious and absolutely in order. For Fasina’s numerous admirers, the nomination is a clear indication of President Tinubu’s recognition of his excellent leadership qualities and remarkable exploits as FUOYE VC.
In five years, from February 2021 when he took over as FUOYE helmsman to February 2026 when his tenure expired, Professor Fasina successfully transformed and repositioned the 15-year-old university for greater heights. As a forward-thinking administrator and accomplished scholar of international repute with over 140 publications to hisname, and revered winner of multiple competitive research grants, Fasina stands out unarguably as the most impactful Vice-Chancellor in FUOYE’s history since its establishment in 2011.
Under his visionary leadership, FUOYE experienced unprecedented growth, emerging as the 4th most sought-after university in the country according to Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) statistics, beating many old and first-generation universities in the ratings. Likewise, his dynamic and pragmatic governance approach placed FUOYE on the global stage, with the university now ranked 6th best among Nigerian universities, in the prestigious 2026 Times Higher Education (THE) Sustainability Impact Rankings.
FUOYE gained national and international acknowledgement under his exceptional leadership. In just five years, student enrolment more than tripled, rising from slightly over 20,000 to over 60,000. He delivered landmark infrastructure that redefined the Ivory Tower. These include a Professorial Complex, laboratories, over 40 blue-roofed classrooms, a modern Computer-Based Test (CBT) Centre, a new Senate Building, academic buildings, 1000-seat Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba auditorium, Fasina Conference Centre, Freedom Park Garden, student hotels delivered through Private-Public Partnership (PPP) arrangements and several other signature projects.
Guided by his Twenty-Point Agenda, Fasina executed over 160 transformative projects, leaving an indelible mark on FUOYE with a distinctive “Blue Roof Legacy” that will define the university for generations.
Held in high regard as a compassionate leader, Professor Fasina prioritized staff and student welfare. Under his stewardship, 2,384 staff received promotions across all categories, without discrimination or vicintimidation. Known for his commitment to due process and staff motivation, Fasina granted over 200 professorial promotions in five years — doubling his original pledge to promote 100 lecturers to professor.
Under his administration in FUOYE, several strategic governance measures and reforms beneficial to the students were implemented. Key institutional milestones recorded in this regard included an instalment-based 60/40 tuition fee structure, a comprehensive student insurance framework, and subsidized transit services. Additionally, he modernized student governance through electronic voting platforms and constructed a dedicated student union complex. The SUG Complex acts as a centralized administrative and social hub that enhances campus stability, fosters leadership development, and strengthens the student voice in university governance.
During his tenure as FUOYE VC, Fasina moved the institution from a not-too-known institution in sports to a national and continental force. FUOYE, under his watch, achieved unprecedented sporting excellence, ranking 1st in Ekiti State, 2nd in Nigeria, and 3rd in Africa in overall football performance. His strategic investments in sports completely elevated the institution’s competitive profile, producing top student players who transitioned into professional football, including a Human Kinetics graduate signed by the Nigerian National League side. He commissioned a new Sports Complex Pavilion at Oye-Ekiti and Sports Complex at Ikole/Ayedun campuses. He deliberately advanced sports both technically and structurally from grassroots to major tournaments.
The award-winning scholar also strengthened FUOYE’s finances as Vice-Chancellor. He increased Internally Generated Revenue, IGR, by over 300%, from N2.3 billion to N12 billion. This was achieved largely through strategic investments in university-owned ventures, like FUOYE Bakery, table water production, a printing press, consultancy activities, FUOYE farms, FUOYE Business School, and FUOYE Micro-Finance Bank. He recorded unprecedented academic expansion, as FUOYE grew within five years from 8 to 18 faculties, 73 to 91 academic programmes, 1 to 19 directorates, 0 to 5 institutes, and 67 to 81 departments. Indeed, Fasina’s five-year tenure left a formidable substructure for FUOYE’s growth, visibility, and long-term excellence.
On the strength of Fasina’s administrative record and giant strides at FUOYE, prominent academic, student, and professional bodies view his ambassadorial nomination as a strategic victory for Nigeria’s public administration, functional diplomacy, global engagement, and foreign policy, while dismissing opposing calls from Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) as being based on unproven allegations that are not new. Fasina had already been duly exonerated by both the police and the university authorities following thorough investigations. The claims against him were dismissed by two successive Governing Councils as mere attempts at character assassination.
While the CSOs also pointed to pending court cases, legal analysts noted that even if there are any, under Section 36(5) of the 1999 Constitution, every citizen is presumed innocent until proven guilty. Therefore, demanding an ambassadorial nominee’s rejection based on unproven allegations could be viewed as a premature denial of his constitutional rights. Any attempt to yield to such a demand would, in the opinion of informed minds and enlightened Nigerians, amount to a dangerous promotion of media trials and sensationalised press coverage over constitutional provisions.
The Federal University Oye-Ekiti Progressives (FUOYE Progressives), in defense of Fasina, slammed the coalition of CSOs and blogs orchestrating a smear campaign against the ex-FUOYE boss. The group, comprising students, alumni, and staff members of the university community, declared that the evil machinations targeted at Fasina would not work.
Members of the group strongly believe that Fasina’s ambassadorial nomination will boost Nigeria’s global image and education sector, given his intellectual sophistication and proven track record in global academic collaborations and research linkages as FUOYE VC. They urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to ignore the needless criticisms against Fasina’s nomination, saying the President made the right choice in picking him.
A statement signed by the group’s spokesman, Dr. Kehinde Alao, maintained that, “Prof. Fasina’s excellent performance as FUOYE’s fourth substantive Vice-Chancellor (from February, 2021 to February, 2026) are abundantly evidenced on the now amazingly looking twin campuses of the University in Oye-Ekiti and Ikole-Ekiti. The staff and students of the University have on several occasions acknowledged and appreciated him for the many milestones. Countless publications about these great achievements by national dailies are all over the media space. President Tinubu is fully aware of these giant strides and this is why he chose to nominate Prof. Fasina as non-career Ambassador, so that he could bring his Midas touch as a quintessential administrator to bear as a worthy Ambassador of Nigeria in the diaspora.”
The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) is also in full support of the ambassadorial nomination of Professor Fasina. NANS is firmly convinced that Fasina, named by different student groups as one of Nigeria’s most student-friendly Vice Chancellors for his open-door policy and accessibility at FUOYE, will perform excellently as an ambassador.
The apex student body in the country applauded President Tinubu for the nomination, noting that it is well-deserved and signals a new era of impactful representation abroad. It urged the Senate, led by Senator Godswill Akpabio, to ignore blackmail and confirm Fasina without delay.
A press statement signed by Comrade Owolewa Taiwo Sunday, the National Head of Administration at the National Headquarters of NANS, Abuja, reads: “The leadership of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), representing the collective voice of millions of Nigerian students at home and in the diaspora, extends its warmest congratulations to the immediate past Vice Chancellor of the Federal University Oye-Ekiti, Professor Abayomi Sunday Fasina, on his well-deserved nomination as a Non-Career Ambassador and High Commissioner Designate by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. This nomination is a profound testament to merit, administrative acumen, and a lifelong commitment to human capital development. NANS declares its total and unwavering support for this appointment, recognizing it as a classic case of placing a round peg in a round hole. NANS wishes to specially appreciate and commend His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, for his deliberate and strategic policy of integrating accomplished scholars and fine academic minds into the governance framework of the country.
“To understand the brilliance of Professor Fasina’s nomination, one needs only to look at his historic five-year tenure as the Vice Chancellor of FUOYE. He remains, by every objective measure, the best Vice Chancellor in the history of the institution. Under his visionary stewardship, FUOYE witnessed unprecedented, multidimensional growth, transforming a young university into a formidable peer of Nigeria’s oldest and most prestigious tertiary institutions. Professor Fasina’s administration was defined by student-centric excellence and an unwavering prioritization of student welfare, safety, and academic comfort, establishing policies driven by innovation and excellence.
“His tenure saw massive infrastructural expansion and academic diversification that positioned FUOYE as a top choice for thousands of Nigerian youths. This was complemented by an open-door leadership style that valued cooperation, mutual respect, and student engagement above administrative bureaucracy. These achievements are permanent landmarks, open and available for any well-meaning citizen to fact-check.
“It is, however, disheartening to observe that some disgruntled elements hiding under the guise of specific civil society groups and mercenary online platforms have resorted to resurrecting previously cleared and settled allegations. These elements seek to blackmail Professor Fasina and extort the system for personal financial gain. NANS urges Mr. President; the Senate President, His Excellency Distinguished Senator Godswill Akpabio; and the entire upper legislative chamber to completely ignore these cheap online jobbers and Abuja-based detractors who raise baseless concerns solely to line their pockets.
“The Nigerian student movement refuses to allow the stellar reputation of an exceptional administrator to be tarnished by malicious campaigns. The constitutional screening and confirmation process must be allowed to run its course, free from the noise of rented critics. Nigerian students stand solidly behind President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on this magnificent nomination. We are absolutely confident that Professor Abayomi Sunday Fasina will deploy the same energy, intellectual depth, and patriotic zeal to his diplomatic assignment, representing Nigeria with the highest level of dignity on the global stage. We urge the Nigerian Senate to expedite his screening and confirmation in the interest of national progress.”
Joseph Andrew writes from Abuja