ASUU STRIKE UPDATE :- ASUU Vows To Continue Strike

* the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has
blamed the rot in the Nigerian university system
on the Executive Secretary of the National
University Commission, Julius Okojie, saying his
failure to insist on quality has bastardised Nigerian
universities.
The lecturers also vowed to continue their strike
unless the federal government honours the 2009
agreement it had with the union.
In a statement signed by its University of Ibadan
branch chairman, Olusegun Ajiboye, ASUU
renewed its call for the scraping or a total
overhaul of the regulatory institution if the nation
wishes to get it right in university education
management.
While calling on the National Assembly to beam
its searchlight on the activities of the NUC, Mr.
Ajiboye said the recent NEEDS assessment report
on universities reflects how much the commission
has failed in its duties as a regulator.
According to him, the report undertaken by
genuine academics contradicts NUC’s
accreditation exercises which gave ‘controversial’
clean bill of health to most universities through
“magomago accreditation.”
The union contended that only in a society like
Nigeria would Mr. Okojie still remain in office after
being heavily indicted in the report, saying “in
sane climes, the NUC boss ought to have resigned
through the revelations made in the NEEDS
assessment report.”
Mr. Okojie had, last week, absorbed his
commission of any wrongdoing in the rot plaguing
public universities in the country, particularly as
regards undeserved accreditation, blaming
members of the ASUU instead.
Mr. Ajiboye, who described the statement credited
to the NUC boss as ‘careless’, accused Mr. Okojie
of using his cronies who can do his biddings to
embark on accreditation.
He said the success of the 2011 elections was
based on the patriotic zeal and contributions of
genuine and patriotic ASUU members nationwide
saying that was why the election was free of
hanky-panky recorded in past elections.
The ASUU statement titled ‘Where Okojie Got It
Wrong,’ insisted that the NUC boss is fond of using
his ‘yes sir’ boys to do hatchet jobs during
accreditations, thereby compromising quality
most of the time.
The union said its almost three-month-old strike is
fully on, adding that the it would not allow itself to
be fooled again with ‘promisory notes’ of the
federal government which had never worked in
the past.
“ASUU cannot be blamed for NUC ‘magomago’
accreditations. Rather than blaming the Union,
Okojie should take full responsibility for all the
fraudulent deeds in the NUC, including the work
and eat accreditations.
“The NUC knows the kind of academics they
select for their ignoble exercises. These are
cronnies of the big man in the NUC. They can
never say no to his biddings. Nigerians should be
proud of ASUU in it’s efforts at repositioning public
universities in the country. One of these major
efforts is the NEEDS Assessment Document.
“This was a product of a rigorous academic
exercise carried out by dependable and credible
members of our Union. Unlike the numerous faulty
accreditation reports which had given these
universities clean bill of health, the NEEDS
Assessment Report stands out as a classical
document of reference detailing the rot and decay
in public universities in Nigeria. All well meaning
Nigerians can see the contrast between okojie’s
‘packaged accreditation reports’ and a credible
job done by ASUU.
“It has become very clear from the Needs
Assessment that Okojie and his cohort of
accreditors have fooled this country for too long.
Enough they say is enough. Time is now for the
Government to beam a searchlight on the
activities of the NUC.
“The Education Committees in both the Senate
and House of Representatives have an arduous
task to do here. Nigerians are calling for
dismantling of an omnibus body that has done the
country more harm than good. NUC must go.
“Professor Julius Okojie cannot absolve himself
from the rot in the university system by regulating
quantity instead of ensuring quality delivery,”
ASUU said.