By Abdullahi Idris, Bauchi The Bauchi State Citizens Forum has strongly condemned the reported plan by the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University...
By Abdullahi Idris, Bauchi
The Bauchi State Citizens Forum has strongly condemned the reported plan by the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU), Bauchi, to shut down some faculties, departments, and academic programmes — a move they describe as “regressive, intellectually weak, and anti-development.”
The group made its stance known during a press conference held at the Bauchi State NUJ Secretariat on Monday, 15th September 2025. Addressing journalists, Comrade Abdullahi Yalwa, PhD, and Barrister Jibrin Sa’id Jibrin, who spoke on behalf of the forum, described the proposed decision as a direct assault on the educational aspirations of Bauchi citizens and a sabotage of ongoing efforts to transform the institution into a conventional university.
The forum, a coalition of progressive, non-partisan groups in Bauchi State, expressed deep concern over the ATBU administration’s alleged plan to close down key faculties such as Management Sciences and halt resource verification for nearly 50 new degree programmes introduced under the previous administration.
“This is not just an internal policy issue; it is an attack on Bauchi State’s drive to improve educational access and socio-economic development,” said Dr. Yalwa. “The steps being taken by the current Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Ibrahim Hassan Garba, are backwards, ill-motivated, and threaten to reverse decades of hard-won progress.”
According to the Forum, the proposed downsizing was recently communicated to the university’s Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and the Students' Union Government (SUG), sparking alarm among stakeholders. The group warned that the decision would deny thousands of prospective students — many from Bauchi State — access to quality tertiary education.
The Forum also raised questions over what it described as the “misguided” leadership of the current VC, noting that Prof. Garba is the first non-indigene to head the university since the tenure of the widely respected Prof. Abubakar Sani Sambo.
“We are not driven by ethnic sentiment,” Barrister Jibrin clarified. “Our opposition is based on data, logic, and the strategic interest of Bauchi State. Our concern is that his policy direction undermines not just the institution, but the future of our youth.”
They further criticised the university’s reluctance to pursue accreditation and resource verification for its distance learning programmes, describing it as a betrayal of global best practices in education expansion.
The Forum praised Senator Shehu Buba Umar of Bauchi South for spearheading legislative efforts to transform ATBU into a full-fledged conventional university — similar to the models adopted in Yola (Modibbo Adama University) and Makurdi (Joseph Tarka University). According to the group, any attempt to shrink ATBU’s academic offerings undermines this national agenda.
The Forum also commended the Chairman of the ATBU Governing Council, Air Commodore Emmanuel Jakada, for his maturity and willingness to engage with stakeholders on the matter. “We urge him to continue to apply wisdom in steering the university through these turbulent times,” the Forum stated.
Calling on Governor Bala Mohammed and all well-meaning Bauchi elders, including former top officials such as Alhaji Yayale Ahmed and Barrister Ahmed Al-Mustapha, the group stressed the need for a unified response to halt what they termed “the dangerous reversal of educational gains.”
The Forum concluded with a passionate appeal to the Federal Government, particularly the Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa, to immediately intervene and protect the academic integrity and future of ATBU.
“Every genuine lover of education and progress must rise to resist this setback. We owe it to our children and generations unborn,” the statement concluded.
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