By Obinna Uballa
There was applause across political, business and academic circles in Akwa Ibom on Monday as eminent boardroom guru, astute corporate lawyer, technocrat, and former minister of Budget and National planning , Senator Udoma Udo Udoma, CON, formally accepts to assume the role of Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council of Akwa Ibom State University (AKSU).
The appointment, announced by Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Governor Umo Eno, is widely viewed as a strategic move to deepen governance reforms and reposition the state-owned university for greater academic distinction and institutional stability.
For many observers, Udoma’s acceptance of this institutional leadership is significant, given his vast cross-sector experience spanning law, business, public policy, corporate governance, and legislative service.
Udoma studied law at Oxford University’s St Catherine’s College and graduated with a B.A. (Law) degree in 1976, and obtained a post-graduate degree, the B.C.L. degree in Jurisprudence in 1977, before returning to Lagos, Nigeria to attend the country’s law school.
A founding partner of the leading commercial law firm Udo Udoma & Belo-Osagie, he built a reputation over four decades as one of Nigeria’s foremost authorities in company law, banking and finance, securities regulation and capital market transactions. The firm, established in 1983, has grown into one of the country’s largest corporate and commercial law practices, marking its 40th anniversary in 2023 with a robust partnership structure and multiple practice areas.
Beyond private legal practice, Udoma’s imprint on Nigeria’s public sector architecture is extensive. In the early 1980s, he served as a consultant to the Federal Government on the feasibility of establishing a liquefied natural gas project in Nigeria and later became the legal member of the LNG Working Committee that facilitated the joint venture between the Nigerian National Petroleum Company and multinational oil firms to establish the Bonny Island LNG project.
Between 1991 and 1993, he served as the pioneer Chairman of the Corporate Affairs Commission, helping to lay the institutional foundations for what has since become one of the country’s most efficient regulatory agencies. He also served as Special Adviser to the Minister of Petroleum and Natural Resources and was a member of several high-level national committees, including the Vision 2010 Technical Committee and the Presidential Committee on Waivers, Incentives and Concessions, which recommended the creation of the Ministry of Trade and Investment.
His legislative career was equally distinguished. Elected Senator for Akwa Ibom South in 1999, Udoma served two terms in the National Assembly, chairing key committees including Appropriations and National Planning and Poverty Alleviation, before rising to the position of Senate Chief Whip. He did not seek re-election in 2007, opting instead to return to private practice and corporate board service.
In the corporate space, he chaired major institutions, including Union Bank Plc and UAC of Nigeria Plc, and served on the boards of several blue-chip companies. From 2008 to 2012, he was Non-Executive Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Udoma is the current Board Chairman of Seplat Energy, an indigenous energy giant, having joined the board on December 1, 2023, as an Independent Non-Executive Director, further reinforcing his credentials in financial sector governance.
His most recent federal executive role came between 2015 and 2019, when he served as Minister of Budget and National Planning, overseeing fiscal policy coordination and medium-term economic planning at a critical period in Nigeria’s economic trajectory.
After leaving office as a Minister in 2019, Udoma remained committed to community and public service. He was appointed the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council of Bayero University, Kano in 2021.
Udoma’s other important engagements also include working, between 1989 and 1991, as a consultant with the New York based law firm, Shearman and Sterling. Working out of their office in Paris, France, he advised companies and governments in Europe, North Africa and the Middle East on financial, energy and investment law.
From 1996 to 1999 he was chairman of the Editorial Advisory Board of ThisDay Newspaper.
It is this blend of legal acumen, legislative experience, boardroom governance and public policy leadership that many stakeholders believe AKSU stands to benefit from.
Alongside Udoma’s appointment, Governor Eno reappointed the Oku Ibom Ibibio, Solomon Etuk, as Chancellor of the university. Etuk, Paramount Ruler of Nsit Ubium Local Government Area, has served in that capacity since 2019, providing ceremonial leadership and continuity.
In the academic hierarchy, Professor Otoabasi Akpan has been confirmed as substantive Vice-Chancellor after serving in acting capacity since August 2025. A professor of Biochemistry, Akpan is credited with steering the institution through a transition phase marked by administrative recalibration and academic consolidation.
Established in 2009, AKSU operates campuses in Ikot Akpaden, Mkpat Enin Local Government Area, and Obio Akpa, Oruk Anam Local Government Area. The university was founded to expand access to higher education and strengthen research-driven development in the oil-rich state.
With the inauguration of a reconstituted Governing Council in Uyo, expectations are high that the new leadership configuration will consolidate institutional reforms, strengthen accountability frameworks and position the university more competitively within Nigeria’s higher education landscape.
