News: FUTO Senate Sacks All Academic Staffs

Federal University of Technology Owerri (FUTO) - For failure to return to classrooms, the Senate of the Federal University of Technology Owerri (FUTO) has sacked all academic staff on its payroll with immediate effect.

The sack order was made known by the Public Relations Officers (PRO) of the institution, Mr Chike Ezenwa, while speaking with the Nigerian Tribune in Owerri, through telephone.
According to him, the senate of the university had declared all the positions of academic staff in the institution, adding that they would be advertised starting from Monday, December 2.
The senate council, he explained, had already compiled the list of vacant positions in the school, adding that who were willing to resume would be adequately protected.

Meanwhile, the FUTO branch of ASUU has said any attempt to break their ranks would be strongly resisted by their members.
This was contained in a communiqué issued at the end o their meeting held on Monday, and signed by both the chairman and secretary, Dr Ikenna Nwachukwu and Dr F.M. Eke respectively.
The communiqué urged members to ignore the resumption notice by FUTO management, adding that the branch would not engage in any academic activities until the Federal Government commited itself to implementing the ASUU-FGN agreement.

UNILAG lecture rooms remain shut

Lecture rooms at the University of Lagos (UNILAG) remained shut on Monday, despite the expiration of the one-week ultimatum given by some members of the ASUU branch of the institution.
Lecturers at the institution, were, last week Monday, served with an ultimatum to resume work by a faction of the union.
Asked their likely next line of action if the lecturers failed to resume work, Dr Micheal Ogbeide, one of the leaders of the faction, refused to divulge their intention.
However, in a telephone conversation with the Nigerian Tribune, on Monday, Ogbeide said since the Federal Government had made a new decision as to when the striking lecturers were to resume, they had no choice but to await government’s next directive.
“Government owns the school, not us, so we have to work with the decision of government.
“The decision of the owner (Federal Government) supersedes that of any pressure groups in the school. By now, schools are working their calendars and adjusting them in preparation for resumption, so one cannot just jump into the class and begin to teach,” he said.

UNIJOS mgt, ASUU set for showdown

Authorities of the University of Jos (UNIJOS) have directed all academic staff of the university to commence work with immediate effect, while the branch chairman of ASUU said the union will not succumb to threat and intimidation.
The authorities of the university, in a circular signed by the registrar/secretary to the council, Mr Jilli Dandam, made available to Nigerian Tribune in Jos, Plateau State, pointed out that all academic staff of the university shall return to their various departments, units and directorates and commence work immediately.

It added that daily compliance register would be kept by all heads of department for all academic staff, while it further directed every head of department to publish lecture time-table for all academic programmes by today.
However, branch chairman of ASUU, Dr Jangkam Wannang, said the union would not succumb to threat to call off its strike, adding that conditions to call off the strike were well spell out.
He said intimidation and harassment of any form would not force the union to call off the strike.
“We will not succumb to threat, the strike is for the improvement of the system. The threat and intimidation by both the government and governing council of a universities will rather complicate the problem rather than addressing it,” he said.


Gombe varsity lecturers fail to resume

Lecturers at the Gombe State University are yet to resume classes, despite the directive to do so by the government.
A NAN correspondent who visited the university campus on Monday reported that while the non-academic staff reported for work, offices of the lecturers were still closed.
NAN observed that the students also did not turn up for lectures as of the time of the visit.
When contacted on telephone, branch chairman of ASUU, Mallam Umar Adamu, confirmed that none of the lecturers of the university had resumed work.
Adamu said the union would meet tomorrow, to decide on what to do.
The premises of the university was, however, calm as security operatives were seen keeping vigilance at the main gate.
The academic staff of Federal University in Kashere, also in Gombe State, did not, however, join the strike.

Source: Tribune