The University of Calabar (UniCal) has suspended Joseph Akpan, the Head of the Department of Pharmacology, due to allegations of misconduct involving the manipulation of examination scores. The announcement was made by Vice-Chancellor Prof. Florence Obi on Wednesday in Calabar.
According to Prof. Obi, Akpan is accused of altering 235 examination result scripts for the course “Introduction to General Antimicrobial Pharmacology (PHM 311)” while serving as HOD. Out of 242 result scripts entrusted to him, only five were reported to have been marked without alteration. The Vice-Chancellor stated that Akpan also allegedly awarded marks to two students who did not sit for the examination.
Prof. Obi revealed that Akpan admitted to the misconduct during a session with the Senate Examination Misconduct Committee (SEMC), justifying his actions by claiming he wanted to protect the department’s image—a rationale that the university management found unacceptable.
As a result, Akpan has been relieved of his roles as HOD and Coordinator of PHM 311 and has been suspended from duty effective October 8, 2024. His responsibilities will be reassigned to other qualified lecturers within the department. Furthermore, Akpan has been instructed to avoid the university premises unless he is responding to invitations from relevant committees.
