By Adadainfo
The vice-presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Dr Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, Tuesday, urged Nigerians to vote wisely in the 2023 general elections following the failure of the Buhari-led government to resolve the lingering strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU.
Dr Ahmed made his opinion known via his verified Twitter handle. According to him, “In 2015 they promised our parents that their kids will never go on strike. It’s seven months, the same kids are sitting at home and not knowing what tomorrow holds. Abeg make Una vote wisely.”
Meanwhile, some state universities are pulling out of the strike. They include Kaduna State University (KASU), which broke out of union through a memo released by the management of the institution.
Other state-owned universities in Nigeria where ASUU members have refused to join the nationwide strike include Kwara State University, Osun State University, Lagos State University, Enugu State University, and Ambrose Alli University in Edo State.
It was gathered that Ekiti State University (EKSU), Ado Ekiti, has also reopened the institution for academic activities. The EKSU chapter of ASUU joined the six month-old strike following the demand by the union for the adequate funding of the universities and implementation of other reforms contained in an earlier agreement with the federal government.
In Kogi state, governor Yahaya Bello had proscribed ASUU for its refusal to recognise his administration’s accepting to meet almost 90% of their demands.
Bello declared all activities of ASUU in the university as illegal from 19th, July 2017.
Meanwhile, a lecturer at Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida University, Lapai, Niger State, Prof Mohammed Aliyu-Paiko, has withdrawn his membership from ASUU.
In an open letter addressed to the ASUU national president, Prof Emmanuel Osedoke, through its branch chairman, Mr Paiko said his decision followed an “irresponsible and inexcusable” tagging of state universities as quacks and irrelevant.
He wrote, “Dear Chairman, please refer to the subject matter above, as it affects my membership of your branch of the National Union.
“After due consideration of recent events concerning the six months’ struggle of the national ASUU, leading to the recent irresponsible and inexcusable tagging by the ASUU president of members in state universities as ‘quacks and Irrelevant’, it has become clear to me that there is a clear perception of bias, total disrespect for and class differences of members in state universities.
“To say that the ASUU president overreached himself by succumbing to pressure and engaging in professional misconduct by using vulgar language on other members is an understatement.
“Prof Osedeke’s outburst is not only a negative point, it is the height of irresponsible leadership, as has been asserted by many others, publicly and privately.
“Despite all the negative press that his uncouth outburst has generated, Prof Osedeke chooses to shift the blame to the journalists who interviewed him, instead of taking responsibility and offering apologies, to regain the confidence of those members who felt slighted by his provocative insults.
“Having considered these events carefully, it has become obvious to me that ASUU as presently constructed, under the leadership of Prof Osedeke at the national and Mr Kudu Dangana at IBBUL, no longer represent for me platform where my grievances may be pursued genuinely.”
