The appointment was contained in a statement signed Obajide Ilugbo, Head, Public and External Relations Unit, Office of the Vice Chancellor of the institution and made available to Tribune Online, on Wednesday.
According to the statement, Akande, who is a governorship aspirant on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo State, was also appointed by the Office of the Registrar as the Director of the Centre for Presidential Studies of the institution.
Professor Akande, 52, bagged his doctoral degree in Political Science from the University of Ibadan in July 1997, having earlier obtained his M.Sc and B.Sc (2nd Class Upper) in 1990 and 1987, respectively from the same institution.
An academic, scholar, social scientist, researcher and public administrator, he began his academic career in 1990 as a Graduate Assistant in the Department of Political Science, University of Ibadan when he was retained from the post-graduate class.
He later ventured into print journalism, rising through the ranks to become a member of the editorial board of the Nigerian Tribune between 1991 and 1993, South-West Regional Editor of The Punch Newspapers (1993-1995), Deputy/Acting Editor, Sunday Tribune (1995 -1997), Editor-in-Chief/Director, Omega Weekly Magazine (1997-1999);Consulting Editor/Member Editorial Board, Nigerian Tribune (1999-2001).
The academic-cum politician returned to academics in 1999 at the Department of Political Science, University of Ibadan and was appointed, two years later, as Deputy Chief Press Secretary to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar in 2001.
He later became Special Assistant (Research & Communication Strategies) to former President Olusegun Obasanjo in 2003 and was appointed the Chief of Staff to Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State in 2011.
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