The Federal Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Ali Pantami has been conferred the title of professor of cyber security by the governing council of Federal University of Technology Owerri (FUTO).
Dr Pantami was among seven associate professors (readers) who were promoted at the university’s 186th meeting.
Others include; Lawence Ettu (Civil Engineering), Godfrey Emeghara (Maritime Management Technology), Okechukwu Onyelucheya (Chemical Engineering), Alex Opara (Geology), Conrad Enenebeaku (Chemistry) and Chikwendu Okereke (Geology).
The council also approved the recommendation of the Academic Staff Appointment and Promotions Committee (Professorial) for the promotion of nine Senior Lecturers to Readers and two Senior University Librarians to Deputy University Librarians.
Pantami, who was recently conferred with the Security and Emergency Management Award (SAEMA) on Cyber Security, lectured on ICT at the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU), Bauchi.
In 2014, he joined the Islamic University of Madinah as Head of Technical Writing and became Director-General, National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) in 2016.
A professorial title connotes leadership and exceptional contribution at national and international levels in research, scholarship, teaching/mentorship and learning.
In Nigerian universities, the rank is conferred at the discretion of the Senate and due to autonomy, the indicators for the appointment depend on the institution.
A senior lecturer at FUTO said that Pantami already indicated that he would not receive remuneration because of his current position.
The staff explained that the process for professorship is usually meticulous even if waivers are granted.
“The professorship is not a theory, but a practical aspect; an expert with the ability to profess his expertise in his field/profession.
“The procedure for appointment and conferment of a professor is annual and includes an application by suitably qualified individuals through recruitment or promotion.
“The application is internally assessed by a panel of assessors (mostly professors), including relevant members of a university’s Senate standing committee of Appointment and Promotion.
“The university communicates to the applicant his/her appointment as professor subject to a positive assessment of External Academic Assessors, usually three, one of which may be a reputable professor in Europe or North America.
“These external assessors are independent of the applicant and are of professorial standing in a discipline related to the applicant’s core research and academic interest.
“The referees must not have supervised or collaborated with the applicant on any research/scholarly projects, and must not be related whatsoever to the applicant”, he said.
