The Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Chief Anyim Pius Anyim, has warned members of governing councils of public universities against interference with the day-to-day administration of the institutions.

Anyim’s warning was contained in a statement issued after a national retreat jointly organized by the Federal Ministry of Education and the National Universities Commission for the newly-inaugurated governing councils of Nigerian universities.

“I strongly advise that the governing councils should not interfere with the day-to-day running of the universities, but focus on policy issues, adopting best practices, monitoring institutional projects and sourcing for funds outside the usual government subventions to improve facilities and infrastructure that would promote teaching, learning and research in the institutions,” he said.

The SGF, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary (Special Duties) in his office, Dr. Jamila Shua’ra, also decried the incessant crises ravaging public universities in the country.

The thrust of the two-day programme was to equip participants with the requisite principles of governing universities, with a view to making the new council members responsive to the expectations of government and stakeholders in implementing public policies.

Also, Executive Secretary, NUC, Prof. Julius Okojie, said the retreat was put together for the council members, who she described as employers of labour to enable them to discharge their duties effectively in moving the institutions forward.

Delivering the keynote address, Education Minister, Prof. Ruqayyatu Rufa’i, said that with the increase in the number of universities, more challenges had ensued which managers of tertiary institutions should be adequately equipped to tackle.

She also charged the various institutions to implement the White Paper reports of the visitation panels to the universities.

The Chairman, House of Representatives’ Committee on Education, Aminu Suleiman, also advised Nigerian universities to strive to take a lead among comity of higher institutions of learning by focusing on research and development.

In his paper titled Overview of the Nigerian University System, Okojie who was represented by Dr. Abiodun Saliu, said the nation’s universities were faced with the challenges of access, relevance, governance, equity, quality and funding.

He said since the NUC was established in 1962, it had ensured that there was an orderly development of university education in the country.

Also, the pioneer Vice-Chancellor, Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Prof. Nurudeen Adedipe, in a paper with the theme, The Nigerian University System: Community Relationship Convergence in Divergence, charged each university to prioritize its academic programmes such that it would claim the status of “centre of excellence” in a chosen or narrow band of disciplines.