The University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), has reiterated that it extended an offer of appointment to acclaimed novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie as a visiting professor, even as a representative of the writer dismissed the claim as false.
The clarification followed conflicting reports triggered by a statement issued by the university on Wednesday announcing the appointment.
UNN’s spokesperson, Agha Inya, had said the Vice-Chancellor, Simon Ortuanya, signed letters dated 18 December appointing Ms Adichie, African Development Bank executive Kevin Urama and University of Chicago academic James Robinson as visiting professors.
According to the university, the appointments were intended to strengthen academic engagement and were accompanied by clearly defined expectations, including teaching activities, research collaboration, mentorship and strategic intellectual contributions.
However, Ms Adichie’s camp swiftly disputed the announcement. In a report by TheCable, her media aide, Omawumi Ogbe, described the claim as “entirely false,” insisting that the author had not received any appointment letter and had no discussions with UNN about a visiting professorship.
Ms Ogbe was further quoted as saying that reports of official letters signed and dated 18 December 2025 were inaccurate.
Ms Adichie, an alumna of UNN, studied medicine at the institution for about a year and a half before leaving Nigeria to continue her education in the United States.
University insists offer stands
When contacted by PREMIUM TIMES on Thursday, Mr Inya stood by the university’s position, insisting that the appointment was genuine.
“The appointment was made. If it was not, we would not have released that statement,” he said.
He explained that the visiting professorship was an offer that Ms Adichie was free to accept or decline.
“It is entirely her decision to accept or reject the appointment. But denying that the appointment was made is not correct,” he added.
Asked whether the author had responded to the offer, the UNN spokesperson said the university was yet to receive any formal reply.
“She is expected to write to the university to indicate her position. That is the normal procedure,” he said.
Mr Inya also disclosed that the appointment letter had been sent electronically to Ms Adichie’s email, with plans to deliver a hard copy through a courier service. He said he could not confirm whether the letter had been acknowledged.
He further suggested that Ms Ogbe, whom he described as a third party, might not be fully aware of the communication between the university and Ms Adichie.
Checks by New Diplomat on Ms Adichie’s verified social media accounts on X and Facebook showed no public response from the author to the reported appointment as of Thursday.
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