September 26, (THEWILL) – The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has said that its members will not return to classrooms until the Appeal Court gives a final judgment against the ruling of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN)
The NICN had on Wednesday ordered ASUU to suspend its seven-month strike, but the Union appealed the ruling.
“This is just an effort in futility because nobody can force us to return to the classrooms until the appeal is concluded. There is no amount of coercion by the Federal Government or anybody that will force us to return to the classrooms until the matter is concluded in the Court of Appeal,” ASUU said, in response to a letter from the National Universities Commission (NUC) directing Vice Chancellors, Pro-Chancellors, and other relevant stakeholders to facilitate the immediate reopening of university campuses, perhaps, in line with the judgement of the National Industrial Court (NIC).
THEWILL reports that the Executive Secretary of NUC, Prof Abubakar Rasheed, had in a letter signed by the NUC Director of Finance and Accounts, Sam Onazi, asked the vice-chancellors and pro-chancellors to ensure that campuses are reopened as quickly as possible and return of normal academic and non-academic activities in the campuses as contained in the court judgement.
He also asked that the vice-chancellors and pro-chancellors to make sure that the members of ASUU immediately resume work and commence lectures, as well as to restore other daily activities and routines of the various campuses.
However, ASUU Vice President, Dr Chris Piwuna, in a meeting with journalists, said, neither the Federal Government nor the NUC was being truthful with the issue of the strike, as they were aware that ASUU had appealed the NIC judgement which ordered its members to return to work.
He said: “NUC is obviously doing a fruitless job because we won’t comply with the directive. NUC and other government officials are clearly aware that ASUU appealed the NIC judgement last week, and this means that all parties must hold on till the matter of appeal is concluded at the Appeal Court.
“Because we have appealed the NIC judgement, the basis of the letter from NUC doesn’t hold anymore. We expect that the NUC should write another letter informing the vice-chancellors and pro-chancellors that there’s an appeal pending in court. But we know they won’t do that for reasons best known to them.
“This is just effort in futility because nobody can force us to return to the classroom until the Appeal is concluded. There’s no amount of coercion by the government or anybody that will force us to return to the classrooms until the matter is concluded in the Court of Appeal.
“I have to re-emphasize that ASUU is not insisting that the matter must be resolve in their own way, and that’s why we are in negotiation with the government. We are always ready to find a middle ground to end the protracted crisis, but the representatives of Federal Government are not helping matter. Each time we hit a middle ground, they (government representatives) would shift the goal post. They keep setting up Committee upon committee and discarding the report.
“We have realized that what shifting ground means to the government is that we return to the classrooms while the challenges are not solved, and that’s not acceptable to us.”
Meanwhile, the Secretary General of Committee of Vice-Chancellors (CVC), Prof. Yakubu Ochefu, told journalists that officials of the committee will take a decision on the matter after a meeting that will take place soon.
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