Prof. Kabir Bala: The 12th Vice Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University Bows Out.
By Abdelghaffar Amoka
When Prof. Kabir Bala was appointed as the 12th Vice Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University Zaria on the 22nd of January 2020, he didn’t envisage a tough time while assuming office on the 1st of May 2020.
As they said, tough times don’t last, but tough people do. Having had the privilege to have held nearly every position in the University, he had the advantage of a deep understanding of the system and was expected to be up to the challenges of the University. The hope was high.
He was a Head of the Department of Building, the pioneer Head of ICT, a Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Environmental Design, a Director of the Directorate of Academic Planning and Monitoring, a Dean of the School of Postgraduate Studies and a Deputy Vice-Chancellor Administration. With this extensive experience, he was prepared for the job and began to strategise as soon as he was appointed.
But a few weeks before taking over, COVID-19 struck and the whole world was destabilized. The academic calendar was cut short a few weeks into the first semester. He took over during lockdown.
To make matters worse, the University was in poor financial standing. He wasn’t perturbed by the obvious challenges. He was determined to reposition the University. He began to search for the minds that would work with him to achieve his mission and vision.
Post-lockdown came with a very poor financial status and campus reopening with safety conditions from Kaduna State government that was not economically friendly. The batch resumption conditions kept students on campus for a longer time without financial compensation.
The university was never prepared for that. The universities never received any COVID-19 financial palliative from either the federal or state governments. Universities were left on their own. This worsens the economic status of ABU. The University management had to make the system survive anyhow.
While the University community was looking forward to the end of the COVID-disrupted academic session and the beginning of a new session that will come with a relief, another tragedy struck. Just after resumption and registration the new session (2020/2021), the University’s account was garnished through a legal decision taken by the judiciary.
Over ₦2.6b of different funds, that included student registration fees, were taken away from the University account. The management was left with just about ₦5 million to run the entire University; an amount that was not enough for one day operating expenses of the University. And guess what? We survived it anyhow – we are academics-. The University was ran from May 2020 to December 2023 under serious financial strangulation.
A bit of relief came in January 2024. But there was another challenge that took it away a few months later. The sudden Electricity tariff increment without notice! The University planned for ₦100m monthly tariff for 2024.
The tariff jumped to ₦300m per month in April 2024. How the University managed to pay for the unplanned electricity bill from April 2024 to date is a question everyone avoided asking, including the university community and government that claims universities are not transparent.
We have a culture of poor documentation. A lot of institutions and agencies are guilty of that Prior to May 2020, several key university governance/policy documents were either not existing, poorly documented or too old.
Poor documentation across the University is one reason why other universities that ain’t close to ABU on a good day think they are better. Kabir Bala came with the zeal to change that narrative. He put up several committees to set the record straight.
The old documents were reviewed, and new documents were created. Fifteen new documents were created, and nine old documents were reviewed. One of the impacts was the international accreditation of some of our courses and ABU in the 1000 THE world ranking and the best public university in Nigeria.
In a historic development, ABU statutes were reviewed after 62 years, and policy documents on ICT, sexual harassment, communication, sport, sanitation, intellectual property, etc, were developed.
Inactive units were revived. One such unit is the Equipment Maintenance and Development Centre. The centre that was once funded by the NUC was dying without funding. The VC maintained that laboratories and equipment maintenance are key to teaching and research. He succeeded in rehabilitating and reviving the centre. It is now one of the most active units of the university.
While rehabilitating the old structures, Kabir Bala, the construction management expert, was putting up new structures. Under him, the University witnessed amazing infrastructural development. The 1000-seat Abdullahi Mahdi conference centre was completed and commissioned. There was a total renovation of the Danfodio hostel. ICSA/Ramat hostel was rehabilitated.
The Department of Computer Engineering has a beautiful building. The Department of Mechatronics building is an envy to others. The ACCENPEE building was completed and commissioned. The African Centre of Excellence on Neglected Tropical Diseases and Forensic Biotechnology moved to their new building.
Two Faculties in Shika for the College of Health Sciences: Allied Health Science and Dentistry. Two blocks of 2 two-storey building female hostels at ABUTH. The Urology and Sequencing Laboratory at the University Teaching Hospital. It is a very long list of completed and ongoing projects.
The ABU community experienced an energy crisis that has resulted in total blackouts across the University. He does not wish to leave without a solution. Just a few weeks before bowing out, Kabir Bala got the University a deal for a 12MW solar plant from the Rural Electrification Agency (REA). The project is expected to be completed by the end of 2025.
There was a boost in the research activities of the University. We saw proper documentation of research grants and research activities. Aside from the attraction of several international and national research grants within his term in office, TETFund IBR, which was shrouded in secrecy, became open and accessible to all academic staff. The creation of the Directorate of Research and Innovation and the office of the DVC Advancement, Research and Innovation were applauded.
He identified potential and brought out new leaders in the University. Some of them were running away from leadership. He made critics a part of his team to experience what it takes to lead. These people worked without responsibility allowance or any form of allowances as the University could not afford to pay such. Leadership is not a walk in the park. This should shape their future criticism.
It was going to be a tough time for ABU and God gave the University a man with the capability, experience and wisdom to take the University through the storm. He has made his mark. He is surely a blessing to ABU. He is leaving as the 12th VC with his shoulder high. All these wouldn’t have been possible without the sacrifice of the loyal team around him. Kudos to their sacrifices.
Kabir Bala has set the pace for the University and the reform for the last 5 years has positioned the University for a greater future. As he bows out fulfilled, the University community is optimistic that the 13th VC will leverage this achievement. Moving forward, we expect ABU to be the overall best University in Nigeria and be ranked among the 500 world’s best universities.
The truth remains that funding is still a huge challenge to the university system. The struggle to pay about ₦300m monthly electricity bill continues. The new VC must be prepared for that.
His team should also be prepared to serve the University without monetary expectations or rewards. We hope that the awaiting results from Yayale Ahmed’s Renegotiation Committee for the ASUU-FG 2009 Agreement will bring overall relief to the University.
Congratulations to Prof Kabir Bala, the 12th VC of Ahmadu Bello University and Best wishes to Prof Adamu Ahmed, the 13th VC of Ahmadu Bello University.
By Abdelghaffar Amoka
