Michael and Cecilia Ibru University, Delta State, has removed the profile and photographs of its Pro-Chancellor, Anthony Kila, from its official website amid controversy over his use of the title “professor”.
Kila’s profile was no longer visible on the university’s website when it was checked at about 9:25am on Tuesday.
Until its removal, his details were displayed alongside those of the university’s proprietress, Cecilia Ibru, a former banker and chief executive officer of the defunct Oceanic Bank, and Vice-Chancellor Ibiyinka Fuwape, who is a professor.
The removal followed an investigation by PREMIUM TIMES, which questioned Kila’s professorial credentials and reported that it could not find evidence that a recognised university had conferred the academic rank of professor on him.
Kila has, however, disputed the report and rejected being described as a “fake professor”.
The university has not indicated whether the removal of his profile was connected to the controversy. It has also not issued a public statement explaining the change or responding to the findings of the investigation.
Fuwape had earlier told PREMIUM TIMES that the university would respond to questions arising from the report.
Responding to the controversy, Kila insisted that he was entitled to use the title and said the report questioning his professorial status was based on an incomplete understanding of the circumstances surrounding his appointment.
PUNCH Online reported that Kila, in a statement dated October 3, 2026, said he remained a professor and stood by the credentials upon which he based the title.
“For the avoidance of doubt, I am a professor, and I stand by the title and the professional and academic credentials on which it is based,” he said.
He said he was prepared to provide documents concerning his professorial status for independent scrutiny.
Kila, who also heads the Commonwealth Institute of Advanced and Professional Studies as its Director, took exception to the description “fake professor”, saying it was presented as an established fact despite what he described as unresolved questions surrounding the basis of his professorship.
“I am baffled by the level of attention directed at me,” he said.
He also stressed that he was not a government official, did not hold political office and was not seeking one.
According to Kila, journalists have an important role in scrutinising the credentials of individuals occupying positions of responsibility, but such investigations should be conducted fairly and with adequate understanding of the facts.
The controversy centres partly on Kila’s account that the European Centre for Advanced and Professional Studies, which he described as being based in Cambridge, United Kingdom, awarded him the professorial title in 2016.
The institution's removal of his profile from its website does not, on its own, resolve the dispute over the validity or basis of Kila's professorial title.
For now, the university has not publicly stated why his profile was removed or clarified its position on the allegations surrounding his academic credentials.
Leave a Reply