Reactions to the National Industrial Court’s decision ordering Academic Staff Union of Universities, or ASUU, members to return to work have been mixed.
Hassan Salihu, a professor of political science at the University of Ilorin, stated in response to the judgment that “one can react to the ruling at two levels” during an interview with some aggrieved members of the Union on Wednesday in Ilorin, the capital of Kwara State.
The legalistic-cum-democratic principles are one. Respect for the rules of the land, including judicial rulings, regardless of how they were reached, should be a given in a democracy.
“In that regard, it is preferable to challenge the verdict in court, which I understand is being considered. The second level relates to the judgment’s realities. I don’t believe that using a legal strategy will help, since it will only make everyone’s time go by by going back and forth.
“Collective bargaining, which is supported by our vote or inclination for democracy, is the only option available to me. I thus propose that meaningful conversations should now begin in earnest after buying time and scoring a quick victory,” he continued.
Professor Moyosore Ajao, the chapter chairman of the Academic Staff Union of Universities at the University of Ilorin, responded, saying, “For the time being, ASUU will act when the national executives of the union would have taken a position.”
The “Nigerian government is hell-bent on destroying the intellectual foundation of the nation,” he claimed. The fate of the Nigerian university system hinges on what Nigerians want it to be.
Professor Olubunmi Omoteso of the University of Ilorin’s Faculty of Agriculture responded by saying, “It is best that ASUU exco reply to the ruling, as in this case, my personal views are not essential.”
Professor Shehu Abdulganiyu Salau, the chairman of ASUU at Kwara State University in Malete, responded to the ruling by saying, “The union is not at all satisfied with the court’s judgement.
“The court wants us to return to class, but our agitations are unresolved.
“No, it never happens. We would request that our attorney file an appeal and request a stay of the judgment’s execution.
With the phrase “together we stand,” he characterized ASUU as a strong labor union that can never be vanquished.
Meanwhile, according to information obtained by BROOMHOME, Professor Emmanuel Osodeke, the union’s national president, has told members via the union’s zonal coordinators that “the union’s counsel is filing an appeal and stay of execution of the court’s judgment.”
He reminded the crowd that “a people united can never be vanquished” and urged them to maintain their composure.
