The Presidency and other stakeholders have kicked against the Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu’s dissolution of the Governing Council of the Nigerian Institute for Trypanosomiasis and Onchocerciasis Research (NITR), Kaduna State.
The presidency in a letter to the minister directed him to rescind the sack of the council
Also, members of the sacked council asked the minister to rescind the decision, saying that their tenure which began in 2018 will elapse in 2023.
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The controversy trailing the dissolution of the council started when Onu in a letter dated August 5, 2021 informed the chairman of the board of NITR, Hon. Haruna Shehu Lambu, that the tenure of the board had elapsed.
Onu said in line with the laws and regulations guiding the tenure of agencies and research institutes under the ministry, “It has become necessary to inform you and members of the Governing Board that the tenure of the Governing Board which was inaugurated on Tuesday, 8th March, 2018 elapsed on 7th March, 2021.”
The minister pointed out that “consequently, the director-general/secretary of the board has been directed to prepare the end of tenure report and submit to the ministry”.
However, the action elicited reactions from the presidency and the lawyers to the NITR board.