FG Hell-bent On Destroying Lecturers, Tertiary Institutions – ASUU
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), has declared that the Federal Government is hell-bent on destroying lecturers of tertiary institutions in the country in order to have the freedom to destroy public universities.
This is as it warned that if the Federal Government continue to withhold their pay, a new crisis in the tertiary institutions in the country would breakout soon.
ASUU stressed that as a body of intellectuals, it is its historical responsibility to protect public universities from collapse and fight for the interest of its members as well as the interests of the Nigerian students.
Chairmen of the University of Ibadan and Ilorin chapters of ASUU, Dr. Ayoola Akinwole and Prof. Moyosore Ajao, respectively, who stated the position of the Union at a special congress of the branches on Monday, said that the Union and its members should not be held responsible for the consequences that its actions, in response to the crude wickedness of the Nigerian state, would have on all stakeholders.
The lecturers therefore urged stakeholders and well-meaning Nigerians to pressure the Federal Government to pay its members the withheld eight-month salaries owed them.
Members of the University of Ilorin branch of ASUU had earlier staged a solidarity rally within the university’s campus before addressing journalists over what they described as the ‘Casualisation of Intellectual Workers in Nigeria: Prelude to Our Response.’
Ajao, who speech was read by the Secretary of the union, Dr. AbdulGaniyu Olatunji, said that a fresh crisis which will surpass all previous ones, is looming again in Nigerian universities as ASUU members cannot and will not continue to do free work that will not be remunerated.
Ajao further said; “We hope that with this notice, all relevant stakeholders, who have the ear of the government, will act fast before the fragile peace restored on our campuses nationwide collapses.
In a related development, members of ASUU of the University of Ibadan, Oyo State, protested against what they described as the ‘victimization of lecturers’ by the Federal Government and its agents.
Also speaking on Monday during a protest, chairman of University of Ibadan ASUU, Dr. Ayoola Akinwole told journalists that since December 19, 2020, the agreement between the union and the Federal Government has not been honoured.
Akinwole noted that rather than swing into action to resolve the issues, the Federal Government preferred to embark on playing politics with the lives of Nigerians and moved to stop the payment of ASUU members’ salaries for seven months, leading to starvation and death of some members of the Union.
