The Federal University Dutse, FUD, Jigawa State, has defended the termination of the appointment of a lecturer, Dr Ramla Muhammad AKamal, insisting that the decision was taken in line with the university’s Conditions of Service and due process.
Kamal, an academic staff member of the Department of Pharmacology, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, had reportedly raised allegations of breach of employment rights, defamation and denial of fair hearing.
But the university rejected the allegations, saying the lecturer was given several opportunities to explain her position and regularise her employment status before the matter was eventually referred to its disciplinary bodies.
The university’s position was contained in a statement issued in Dutse on Sunday by its Acting Director of Public Relations, Abdullahi Yahaya Bello.
According to the institution, Kamal was employed as a Lecturer in the Department of Pharmacology on May 25, 2018.
The university said she was later granted a two-year study fellowship at the University of Putra Malaysia, where she was to pursue a master’s degree in Pharmacology and Toxicology.
FUD explained that the fellowship was approved under a self-sponsored arrangement with salary, despite the fact that Kamal had allegedly not completed the period ordinarily required to qualify for such a privilege.
The university said Kamal signed a Study Fellowship Bond as part of the arrangement.
Under the bond, she was expected to return to the university after completing her programme and serve for the prescribed period applicable to staff who received salary while on fellowship.
Study fellowships are commonly granted by universities to enable academic staff to acquire higher qualifications and improve their skills. Such arrangements are usually tied to conditions requiring beneficiaries to return and serve their institutions after completing their studies.
The aim is to ensure that universities benefit from the training provided to their staff and that public or institutional resources used to support such programmes are not lost.
According to FUD, it later approved an extension of Kamal’s fellowship, moving her expected date of resumption to November 10, 2022.
The university, however, alleged that she did not return to duty after the approved period expired.
FUD said a staff audit conducted in 2024 drew attention to the matter and prompted the management to direct Kamal to resume duty.
Rather than return, the university said she requested the suspension of her obligations under the Study Fellowship Bond.
The request, according to the institution, was rejected.
The Head of the Department of Pharmacology was then said to have advised Kamal to return to duty in accordance with the terms of the bond.
FUD said her continued failure to resume work eventually led to the commencement of an internal disciplinary process.
As part of the process, the university issued her a formal query, asking her to explain her failure to return to duty.
According to the university, Kamal responded by explaining that she was in the United States awaiting residency documentation that would enable her to undergo further professional training in Clinical Pharmacology.
The university said it did not immediately terminate her appointment after receiving the explanation.
Instead, it claimed that she was given additional opportunities to regularise her position.
FUD said Kamal also appeared virtually before an Investigative Committee on two occasions.
The committee was constituted to examine cases involving university staff who failed to resume duty after completing or exhausting approved study fellowships.
According to the university, the committee advised Kamal to return to the institution and channel any further request through the appropriate administrative procedures.
The university, however, alleged that she again failed to return.
The matter was subsequently referred to the Senior Staff Disciplinary Committee, SSDC, for further consideration.
FUD said the SSDC invited Kamal on two occasions to appear before it and present her defence.
The university claimed that she failed to honour both invitations.
The committee therefore proceeded to consider the records available to it before making its recommendations to the university’s Governing Council.
The Governing Council, as the institution’s highest governing body, has responsibility for major administrative matters, including the appointment and discipline of senior members of staff, subject to the university’s governing laws and regulations.
FUD said the council acted on the recommendations of the disciplinary process and approved the termination of Kamal’s appointment in accordance with the university’s regulations.
The university also said its Bursary Department was directed to calculate the amount of salary paid to Kamal during the period under review.
The amount was put at N16,375,817.
FUD maintained that the termination was therefore not arbitrary and was not based on a decision taken without hearing the lecturer.
The university said the various steps taken before the termination demonstrated that Kamal was given opportunities to respond to the allegations against her.
It listed the formal query issued to her, the opportunities to regularise her position, her virtual appearances before the Investigative Committee and the invitations extended by the Senior Staff Disciplinary Committee as evidence that due process was followed.
The institution also maintained that the disciplinary action was based on its Conditions of Service and the terms of the Study Fellowship Bond signed by the lecturer.
The dispute highlights the responsibilities that come with study fellowships granted to academic staff, particularly where salaries and other institutional resources continue to be paid during the period of study.
Universities rely on such programmes to improve the qualifications of their lecturers and strengthen their academic programmes. At the same time, institutions usually require beneficiaries to comply with agreed conditions, including returning to duty after their studies.
Failure to return can create staffing challenges, especially in specialised fields such as Pharmacology and other areas of medical education where universities depend on qualified academic staff.
FUD said it remained committed to fairness, transparency and adherence to its rules in handling staff matters.
The institution also rejected the claim that Kamal was denied fair hearing, insisting that the procedures followed before the termination provided her with opportunities to present her side.
The university’s statement was issued in response to the allegations made by Kamal and represents FUD’s account of the dispute.
The lecturer’s claims and the university’s defence could potentially be subject to further legal or administrative review, depending on any action she may choose to take over the termination of her appointment.
FUD has maintained that its decision was reached through established procedures and was based on Kamal’s alleged failure to comply with the terms of her study fellowship and subsequent directives to resume duty.