September 21, (THEWILL) – The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has rejected a ruling of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria, asking the leadership of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), to suspend its ongoing strike.
THEWILL earlier reported that the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN, on Wednesday, ordered ASUU to suspend its seven months old strike.
But in response to the court ruling, NANS in a statement issued by its National Public Relations Officer, Giwa Yisa Temitope, said the students’ body was disturbed by the order, saying such “betrays equity.”
The PRO said that the Federal Government ought not to have taken ASUU to court, submitting that the order by the court had not in any way, resolved issues raised by ASUU.
He urged the Government to accede to the demands of ASUU, by paying withheld salaries of lecturers and improving facilities in public universities.
The statement read: “Our attention has been drawn to news of a court judgement mandating the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to call off its 7-month strike. As an association, we feel disturbed to read the news of the judgment because we believe that it betrays equity.
“Ordinarily, the Federal Government is not meant to have dragged ASUU to court. But, the fact that they had to drag ASUU to court is a signal that this government cannot handle a crisis. And, we want to state categorically that the court cannot force members of ASUU back to lecture theatres.
“And, as it stands today, with that court judgement, we maintain that the court has not resolved the problem and we reject the judgement in strong terms. The court could have said that the Federal Government should go and pay rather than say that lecturers who are on strike should go back to classrooms. We were expecting the court to have understood that lecturers are on the contract of personal service hence, they cannot be compelled to render a service they don’t want to render.
“The only remedy to this strike action is for the Federal Government to accede to the demands of ASUU which the government willingly entered into with them and properly fund education.”
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