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A Makerere don has petitioned the university council praying to reverse the appointment of his rival to the post of vice-principal.
Dr. Nicholas Itaaga, in his March 9 petition, said the selection of Dr. Ronald Bisaso as vice-principal of the College of Education and Surgery (CEES) was “unjust and violated the principles of natural justice.” he claimed.
“Despite my excellent performance in both activities to collect data on my qualifications for the job, the Senate [has] They chose Bisaso instead of me,” Itaga said.
The petition was submitted on the same day that the University Council, headed by Dr. Lorna Magala, approved and sent the recommendation on the appointment to Rector Ezra Surma for approval.
On March 3, on the orders of Vice-Chancellor Barnabas Nawangwe, the Senate was convened to vote on the appointment of presidents and vice-chancellors of the five universities.
The elections were called after a search committee interviewed and evaluated the candidates and made recommendations for their respective appointments.
In a short email reply to this newspaper, Professor Nawangwe said it was standard procedure in the Senate to put all recommended candidates to a vote.
“This is not the first time that the candidate with the highest score does not receive the most votes,” he said, without elaborating.
While Itaga and his colleagues agree with the deputy prime minister’s views, their frustration stems from the way the process is being conducted.
“Of course, voting is possible, but in an institution that enhances Makerere’s reputation, voting must meet certain minimum standards. Like Dr Bisaso, candidates are not allowed to nominate voters to represent them. No. And voters cannot vote for someone who has not been given the opportunity to present themselves,” said CEES Associate Professor Dr. Jude Sempebwa.
In his rebuttal, Sempebwa told Daily Monitor that Bisaso, who is still a senator, was allowed to proceed with the vote without giving his competitors any opportunity to campaign or notice of the vote. .
“Since even the Senate was only convened to finalize the selection of the vice-principal, and most members did not know the candidates, it seemed logical to accept the search committee’s recommendation. But the deputy prime minister has just declared elections to be held,” Sempebwa said.
Mr Itaga lost by 54 votes and 3 votes, with Mr Sempebwa claiming that some officials, such as Dr Kizito Maria Kasule, dean of the Margaret Trowell School of Industrial Arts, had tried to oppose the vote. did.
“he [Kasule] He said he tried to object to the vote without hearing from the candidates, but the deputy prime minister waved him off and instructed the secretariat to “distribute the ballots.”
Dr. Kitizo has not yet responded to our request for comment.
The aftermath of this incident comes against the backdrop of a long-standing feud at CEES, in which Mr. Bisaso had previously misled his doctoral course supervisors into co-publishing in a journal, damaged the university in a lawsuit, and He pointed out that he suspected that the minutes of the meeting had been tampered with. A look at the meeting.
In July last year, this newspaper reported that several doctoral candidates had suffered “irreparable harm” following a dispute between Mr Bisaso and Mr Sempebwa.
Sempebwa and Bisaso, the dean of the East African Graduate School of Higher Education, have been embroiled in a feud since 2017 that has left some students dead.
“I am being targeted because my boss is Mr Sempebwa and he has a problem with Mr Bisaso,” student Peter Ntale told Daily Monitor last year.
Like Ntare, who was unable to obtain defense for his thesis for over a year, other students such as Sir Stella Kamanzi, John Habimana, Sophia Geela and Ahmed Katalemwa also continued to quietly vent their grievances. .
On June 10, 2021, the University Council established a committee to search for and interview suitable candidates for the positions of principal and vice principal in CEES and the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. Veterinary medicine, animal resources and biosecurity. Natural Sciences; Computing and Information Sciences. and humanities and social sciences.
For CEES, Mr. Bisaso and Mr. Itaaga were selected as finalists to bring together the vision and strategic direction of the university, their knowledge of the higher education sector, their ideas for cascading the research-led mantra, and inclusive practices at the university. They were interviewed about important factors such as their plans to promote.
The committee, led by John Chris Nsima, acting director of the National Uganda Federation of Disabled Persons, includes National IT Authority planning director Edward Kitugo, councilors Jolie Uzamukunda and Helen Nkabala, and KCCA deputy mayor Doreen Nkabala. Nyanjura, a former member of parliament, participated. Jude Mbabali as a member.
In its December 2021 report, the investigative committee gave Itaaga a score of 69% for the interview and Bisaso 57% for the interview, and 41% to 34% for the presentation.
The committee recommended that Mr Itaga, a senior lecturer in educational economics and comparative education, be appointed as deputy principal.
Nsima declined to comment on the matter, but Nyanjura said their nominations were not based on automatic appointment of those at the top of their ranks on merit.
But Mr. Itaaga claims this is a gross procedural irregularity that gave Mr. Bisaso an unfair advantage.
“This request is for you and the members of the council to take advantage of your advantageous position in the recruitment and selection process for vice principals to rectify the aforementioned injustices,” Itaaga told Magara .
He also noted that section 29(2) of the Universities and Other Higher Institutions Act 2001 and the Universities Act 2012 determine the selection of vice-principals on the basis of evidence of the applicant’s qualifications rather than electoral popularity. he claimed.
“The Senate voted for Mr. Bisaso without giving me the opportunity to provide input on my management experience and vision for CEES,” he said.
The decision now rests with the Prime Minister, and Itaaga and those on board are understood to be throwing one last bait into the pond in the hope that the Prime Minister will be able to veto the appointment in one fell swoop.
This is a big challenge because the Senate, the Council, and venture capitalists are all giving their blessings.
And the ominous message couldn’t be any darker when Dr. Lorna Magara, Chair of the University Council, told this newspaper: “Even if there is a national election, the winner will be sworn in once the petition is submitted.” It wouldn’t have been a thing.
“Every institution has procedures and processes that govern issues of leadership and governance. At Makerere, too, these processes are contained within the various laws and statutes that govern it. Mr Magala said: Itaaga’s petition, which arrived after his departure, “will be analyzed and a decision will be taken accordingly,” it added.
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