In thisminute programme, the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic) of the University of Abuja, Professor Aisha Sani Maikudi, whose area of specialty is International Law, with a background from a family of academics, shared her experiences as the youngest female to attain such feat from the North West.
It is not every day that we have young professors on this programme; how was your path to professorship?
I started quite early because my mom said her friends had kids in school, so she also wanted her own there. I think she took me to school at the age of one, even though it was just prep.
I finished primary school at the age of 10, which was when I started secondary school. That was at Queens College, Yaba, Lagos. I finished at the age of 16 in 1999.
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From there, I proceeded to the United Kingdom, where I did my A Level for two years at the Cambridge Centre for … Studies. Then I went to the University of Redden for my LLM to the London School of Economics and Political Science for my LLM, which is the masters, then I came back home for my Law School.
After Law School, I had to do Bar, parts one and two, after which I went for the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme and started lecturing.
Is lecturing your first love, or how did it happen?
When I was in school, wisdom was still being sought. Lecturing wasn’t anything I thought I would do because when you are a student all you want to do is finish school. But my mom was a teacher, so that influenced it a bit.
Was it at the beginning at the University of Abuja or did you start in another university?
I started at the University of Abuja. After my NYSC at the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) then, my mom was doing her PhD and I used to follow her to the university sometimes for her defence and other stuffs. They had an advert for employment and one of her supervisors was Professor Nuhu Yakub, who was the vice chancellor. I had some interactions with him and he suggested I should apply.
I did the application process and was called for an interview. I was interviewed by the then head of the Department of Private and Islamic Law, Professor Wazari.
Does that come under the Faculty of Law?
Yes.
Including your area of specialisation?
I did a specialised master’s in Public International Law because that’s my area of interest.
He said there was no problem with that, so I should not worry because they would always give me what I was interested in to teach.
As at then, we had so many people whose areas of interest were not necessarily with the department they were put in, but you always had the option to teach what you were interested in. We had only two departments then, but now that we have four, everyone is under his own area of specialisation. For example, I am now under the Department of Jurisprudence and International Law.
Do you also teach Company Law?
Exactly.
Is it because it is one of the hot areas?
When you are in school, your teachers actually influence you a lot. When I was in the university, Company Law was something everyone always said was difficult, so they didn’t like it, especially because it has so many sections; and it is cumbersome and really bulky. And there are technical things like taxation law. But my teacher made it very interesting, so I enjoyed it. And I always like a challenge. If I find something difficult I try to make sure I know what it is all about so that I can answer a question on it. That was what got my interest in Company Law.
I had interest in International Law, which wasn’t a core subject. It wasn’t compulsory but it was very interesting. My teacher made it very interesting, so I got an interest in it. That was why I specialised in International Law, but I still enjoyed Company Law very much.
Between International Law and Company Law, which one is your real love?
It is difficult because right from the beginning, I took International Law, but Company Law has always been very interesting to me.
Is that probably because that is where a lot of money is?
No, it wasn’t about the money, if it was about money I wouldn’t go into teaching at all.
Corporate lawyers usually charge hefty fees.
Do they? I don’t practise, but I think you make more money from election cases. I have always been interested in International Law, that is why I floated a course called United Nations Law, which talks about the organisation, its history, institutions, what they have done, their resolutions, how they have been able to keep peace and conflict – everything to do with that.
Company Law is what I teach my undergraduates; and I have always done that since I started working in the university.
Do you also teach or supervise postgraduate students?
Yes. The United Nations course is for postgraduate students.
Have you completed any PhD supervision?
Yes.
Quite a number?
Yes. I don’t have a figure right now but I have done so. And you know the supervision is not just about the number you have graduated, we do internal examinations as well. Sometimes you also look at the PhD and the LLMs of other lecturers.
I know that at the postgraduate level there are also external supervisors; do you supervise people from other universities, especially in the two areas you specialise in?
Yes. I think what you are talking about is external defence.
Between internal and external students, who are more exciting?
External students are more detailed. It is what the external examiner says that determines the grade you get and whether you actually passed or failed. But there is none that is less.
We hear that some students who don’t measure up are still allowed to graduate even when the lecturers are not too satisfied with their performance; would you say you are tough on your students?
Not in the Faculty of Law, University of Abuja.
So you are sticker for the rules?
Yes. In the Faculty of Law we don’t take that; it is a very sound and serious faculty. Even if a decision is going to be taken regarding a particular set or group of people, it is done at the faculty level, with everyone’s say. We have rules and regulations that guide us.
And you are a deputy dean in the faculty; am I correct?
I was.
That was before you became a deputy vice chancellor?
That’s right.
I imagine that the deputy vice chancellor (academics) oversees everything in the university while the duty of the dean is slightly smaller. What is the difference between the two jobs?
As a deputy you deputise, which means you know whatever your superiority tells you to do.
Is that supposed to be a spare tyre responsibility?
Exactly. Whatever your superior tells you to do is what you do. I was the deputy dean of the faculty under two different deans. They would tell you what you do.
As the deputy vice chancellor now, it is really the same thing. However, you have some statutory committees to chair. For example, we have a central committee on exam malpractice, staff development committee, the committee of provosts, which the deputy vice chancellor (academics) chairs. You would do whatever the vice chancellor needs you to do.
From your findings and experience, how big a problem is exam malpractice, especially in the university, where you are?
Exam malpractice is a serious issue in all the universities in Nigeria, and University of Abuja takes it very seriously. And you know that students, for one reason or another, are always willing to break the law and cheat. And they think they won’t get caught. But even if you were not caught the first time, second time or the third time, one day you will be caught.
It is especially sad when they are caught at their final level because if you are found guilty, it is expulsion. It is a really sad situation because it means that all those years you spent in school would be wasted.
You expelled quite a number of students recently; is that correct?
It is done at the departmental level, then faculty and the Senate. We present our findings to the Senate, which approves or disapproves it.
So it is quite an exhaustive process to ensure that you are fair to all the sides involved.
Exactly.
Apart from the University of Abuja, there are all sorts of things happening in different universities. Recently, there was a case of a lecturer who was caught writing exam for his wife in one of the universities. From your findings, how widespread is exam malpractice?
It is human nature. Sometimes you think you want to help out because of love or financial gain or other reasons and they don’t want to fail. That’s the problem.
People don’t realise that even when you fail, some disappointments are blessings in disguise. Just because you have failed doesn’t mean that you won’t make it in life. It really doesn’t mean anything because even if you fail you would get up and try again, but people are not willing to do that. They just want to go along with their mates and finish at the same time.
We have realised that it is a problem and that’s why we take very stringent steps to ensure that everything is done fairly. There’s no cause for concern or alarm. We do still have some cases, but when you look at the number of students we have at the university, it is a very minute percentage.
What about sexual harassment against females; have you in any case harassed by your students, fellow lecturers or anyone within the system?
No.
Have you been involved in investigating any of such cases?
I have not, but they exist.
Has there been a recent case in the university where you are?
There are some cases and the university is looking into them. The vice chancellor does not tolerate that. In fact, we have a centre for gender studies; and the director of that centre is chairing the Committee on Dress Code and Sexual Harassment. So we don’t tolerate it. Sometimes we have sting operations and the university management is involved. My school takes it very seriously. In fact, we had a situation where the vice chancellor made sure that a staff was prosecuted.
On international law where you indicated interest and wrote some articles or a whole paper around the issue of the Security Council, probably hinting at the unfairness of it all. If you were in a position to change things, what would you change – expansion of the council or its abolition so that everybody is equal in that body?
Not abolition because if you abolish the Security Council the United Nations would seize to exist. And I wouldn’t call for an expansion because if you do that you are still perpetrating the same problem. Not everyone is there, unlike the General Assembly.
What I would recommend is that it should be something similar to the American system, where Congress can overrule the president. Therefore, if the Security Council passes a resolution or wants to do something the General Assembly is not comfortable with or the world is not okay with, I feel that when they veto a resolution, it should be put to a vote; and a three-quarter vote or two-third should be able to overrule that.
Is your interest in working in the United Nations still there, such that all your current academic engagements are in preparation for that?
No.
Why; have you lost interest in international organisations?
It is not that I have lost interest, it is just that teaching wasn’t something I thought I would do, but now that I have been teaching, I really don’t think there’s anything better than that. Everywhere I go; and it is not an exaggeration, I usually meet one or two of my students and it gives me great joy to see what they have become. You make an impact on people’s lives and sometimes you can see it.
You mentioned your mom but not your dad, whom I believe is also kind of academically related in terms of his work; what about him?
I grew up seeing books. Half of my dad’s bed is filled with books, and that’s what gave me the interest to read. And every time he travelled I always asked him to bring me books. So I was always reading.
So these experiences helped to make you who you are.
Exactly. Also, at the age of 10 when I wanted to go to Queen’s College in Lagos, being someone from Katsina, he encouraged it. And when I finished, he took me to the United Kingdom although many people were against it.
