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The Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU has called the bluff of the federal government over the directive to vice chancellors of the nation’s public universities to reopen the schools for resumption of academic activities.
The government, whose directive was contained in a circular by the National Universities Commission, NUC, specifically tasked the university managements to allow students to continue academic exercises.
Reacting to the directive, the National President of ASUU, Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke,
in a chat with Vanguard, said the FG was not talking to his members.
He said, “We are not holding the keys to the campuses. We did not shut down any university. Those who shut down the universities are the ones who can decide to open them or not.
“As for us going back to work, the government is not talking to us. We did not institute the case at the industrial court, some people took us there and we have done the needful of exercising our right to appeal,” he added.
On when the appellate court would hear the matter, Osodeke said no date has been fixed yet.
Meanwhile, the Congress of University Academics, CONUA, has said its members are ready to resume duty.
The National Coordinator, Dr Niyi Sunmonu, told our correspondent that his members were never on strike.
“We did not go on strike in the first instance and we were working until the management of the universities shut down the institutions. For instance, some of our members, including me, concluded our workloads before the closure. We are only unhappy that our members were lumped up with those who went on strike and our salaries were not paid,” he said.
