Again, Jonathan Urges ASUU to Call off Strike ASUU • Opening universities not within Pro-Chancellors’ powers,” says union By Tobi Soniyi, Damilola Oyedele and Ademola Adeyemo For the umpteenth time, President Goodluck Jonathan, Wednesday pleaded with the striking university lecturers to call off their over-four month strike and return to the classrooms and partner government in the task of reforming the education sector. The president who spoke at the 50th anniversary of the Nigerian Law School (NLS) in Abuja called on the striking lecturers to appreciate governments commitment to the education sector. Represented by the Attorney- General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Bello Adoke (SAN) the president called on Acdemic Staff Union of University (ASUU) to partner government to find solution to the problem facing the sector. The plea came on the same day ASUU members dismissed the order of Universities’ Pro- Chancellors which directed that all universities be opened forthwith. The union said the Pro-chancellors did not have such powers to order the re- opening of the universities, The president urged stake holders in the judiciary to consider whether the present centralised training of lawyers was ideal or to have a centralised professional examination body. The president said the main work of building quality lawyers is rested so much on the nations universities. Government, according to him, is also making concerted efforts to enhance infrastructural facilities in all the campuses of the Nigerian Law School in order to engender a conducive learning environment. Also speaking, the Chief Justice of Nigeria, (CJN), Justice Mariam Aloma Muhktar, called on the federal government to invest in legal education in order to have a crime-free society. The CJN further called on students of the law school and legal practitioners to strive to acquire the actual knowledge that would help them excel in their chosen career. She however noted that the law school was instrumental to the improvement of the nations judiciary, just as she called on lawyers to be worthy in learning and character. In his speech, the President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Chief Okey Wali (SAN) stated that there was a need for the law school to celebrate its 50 years of existence going by the achievements recorded so far. He also called for improvement of the law school curriculum considering the happenings around the world. Wali also said the time allotted for chamber and court attachment be extended and that more teachers should be employed. The chairman of the Council of Legal Education, Chief O.C.J Okocha (SAN) commended the staff of the law school for a job well done adding that they had demonstrated a sense of hard work. He however, revealed that the council had put up a committee to review the curriculum for all the law faculties in the nations universities so as to enhance the quality of lawyers training. Also speaking, the Director General of the NLS, Dr. Mamman Tahir, said the law school had produced 88,060 lawyers in 50 years of its existence. Mamman said funding had been problematic and characterised by low capital allocation. The Committee of Pro- Chancellors of Nigerian federal universities, after an emergency meeting in Abuja on Tuesday night, had directed that all public universities in Nigeria be re-opened to students immediately. The directive of the Pro- chancellors was based on reports that over 60 percent of ASUU members were favourably disposed to the suspension of the strike, even as some universities have already pulled out of the strike. But the Chairman of the University of Abuja Chapter, ASUU Dr. Clement Chup, in a telephone conversation with THISDAY yesterday, said it is not the responsibility of the Pro-Chancellors to open the universities. “The issue of opening or closing a university lies with the Senate of the institution. They cannot be usurping other people’s powers. It is wrong. Let us see how this will go,” he said. However, the Secretary General of the Non Academic Staff Union of Universities (NASU), Comrade Peters Adeyemi however noted that the Pro- Chancellors may be acting on the directives of the Federal Government who is the proprietor of the Federal Universities. Speaking with THISDAY in a telephone conversation said if the Pro-Chancellors who are the Chairmen of the Governing Boards and who are appointed by the President give such order, then it is legitimate. “But have they resolved the crises? That is the question. If the issues are not resolved, would the pro-chancellors go and start teaching the students even if the universities re-open?” he queried. “I cannot speak for ASUU on whether they would go back to the classrooms based on this directive,” Adeyemi added. Adeyemi however cautioned that other unions in the tertiary system should not be short-changed in the process of the government settling with ASUU. “We want the universities to reopen. We are not on strike but we also have our grievances, so in the process of settling ASUU, the government should settle grievances of other unions once and for all, if not, it would still amount to more crises in the sector. The government must not unsettle or sacrifice NASU, SSANU and other unions in appeasing ASUU,” he said. Meanwhile, ASUU yesterday berated the supervising Minister of Education, Nyesom Wike over his comment that the union was making new outrageous demands but ASUU described it as absolute lie. The Union said it wanted President Goodluck Jonathan to facilitate the endorsement of resolutions reached with him and signed by high ranking government official preferably the Attorney-General of the federation but not a permanent secretary. We are not making fresh demands. In fact, the NEC of the union would have suspended the strike but the concerns of our congresses were that many of the things agreed to with Mr President during the November 4th meeting were not included in the letter signed by a permanent secretary in the Federal Ministry of Education, Dr Mark John Nwobiala.
Posted on: Thu, 28 Nov 2013 18:51:23 +0000
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