The proprietor of Tansian University, Umunya, Anambra State, has rejected the purported appointment of Rev. Fr. Prof. Nnamdi Ambrose Nwankwo as Acting Vice-Chancellor, declaring that the appointment is unknown to the proprietor and has no place within the university’s recognised governance structure.
In a strongly worded position, the proprietor, Missionary Servants of the Church (MSC), also known as the Missionary Sons of Blessed Iwene Tansi (MST), said: “Rev. Fr. Prof. Nnamdi Ambrose Nwankwo is not the Acting Vice-Chancellor of Tansian University, Umunya. His purported appointment is unknown to the proprietor and does not derive from any recognised authority of the university.”
The proprietor further stated: “Tansian University already has a subsisting Vice-Chancellor, Prof. E. U. Nwadialor, whose tenure remains valid. There is therefore no vacancy in the office of Vice-Chancellor that could justify the appointment of an Acting Vice-Chancellor.”
The declaration followed an announcement that Fr. Nwankwo had been appointed Acting Vice-Chancellor following the death of Prof. Nnamdi Dike Umeoduagu who was also not legitimiatly appointed.
The proprietor, rejected the authority behind appointed of Fr. Nwankwo, saying: “The body described as the Governing Council and the entity known as Tansian University Umunya Ltd/Gte and its board of directors, from which this purported appointment emanated, are not recognised by the proprietor as the lawful authorities vested with power to make such an appointment.”
The proprietor added: “No person or body that is not recognised as the lawful governance authority of Tansian University can validly appoint an Acting Vice-Chancellor of the university.”
The position assumes greater significance in the light of correspondence from the National Universities Commission dated August 18 and September 3, 2026. The August correspondence identifies the Missionary Servants of the Church (MSC) as the proprietor of Tansian University under the university’s approved Academic Brief and the relevant provisions of the Tansian University Law 2007.
The September 3 NUC letter went further, stating that the Board of Trustees, Board of Directors and Governing Council associated with the disputed structure were dissolved and not recognised by the Commission. It also stated that Tansian University Umunya, Anambra State Ltd/Gte was not recognised by the NUC and could not validly direct the affairs of Tansian University.
Against that background, the proprietor questioned the legal foundation of the purported appointment.
“If the body that recommended and approved this appointment is the same governance structure that the National Universities Commission has said it does not recognise, then the question is simple: by what authority did that body purport to appoint an Acting Vice-Chancellor?” the proprietor said.
The proprietor also rejected any suggestion that the death of Prof. Umeoduagu automatically created a vacancy in the substantive office.
“The death of an individual who may have been occupying an acting or other position cannot terminate the subsisting tenure of the duly appointed Vice-Chancellor. Prof. E. U. Nwadialor remains the Vice-Chancellor of Tansian University, Umunya,” the proprietor stated.
The NUC’s correspondence had earlier stated that Prof Nwadialor’s appointment by the Governing Council on May 1, 2024, effective from May 6, 2024, remained valid until May 5, 2029 under the Tansian University Law 2007, First Schedule, Section 4.
The proprietor said the dispute was therefore not about Fr. Nwankwo’s academic credentials or whether an interview process took place, but about the authority of the body that purported to appoint him.
“This is not a question of whether Rev. Fr. Prof. Nnamdi Ambrose Nwankwo is qualified academically. The fundamental issue is whether the body that purported to appoint him had the recognised authority to do so and, more importantly, whether there was any vacancy in the office of Vice-Chancellor in the first place,” the proprietor said.
The proprietor consequently warned members of the public, staff, students and other stakeholders against treating Fr. Nwankwo as Acting Vice-Chancellor.
“Members of the public should exercise caution and should not recognise or deal with Rev. Fr. Prof. Nnamdi Ambrose Nwankwo as Acting Vice-Chancellor of Tansian University, Umunya, because the purported appointment is not an appointment made by the recognised proprietor or lawful authority of the university,” the proprietor said.
The proprietor concluded: “Prof. E. U. Nwadialor remains the subsisting Vice-Chancellor of Tansian University, Umunya. Any purported appointment made over or around his subsisting tenure is rejected and should not be presented as the position of Tansian University.”