The Gombe State University (GSU) chapter of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) yesterday rejected a directive by the University Governing Council asking them to resume academic activities latest by September 9.
Addressing reporters after its congress held yesterday on the campus of the university, GSU ASUU Chairman, Dr Suleiman Salihu Jauro said the congress “resolved to reject the call by the university administration for members of staff to return to work as the indefinite strike action called by the National Executive Council is yet to be vacated.”
He said although the union regretted that the industrial action has lingered for too long due to a lack of seriousness on the part of the Federal Government to honestly engage the national leadership of the union, he pleaded with members of the public to show understanding and maximum cooperation towards prosecuting the strike to its logical conclusion.
“We sympathise with the students and other stakeholders whose activities have been negatively affected by the protracted industrial action,” said Jauro.
According to him, the GSU ASUU wished to correct the notion that state universities have no business participating in the ASUU strike, stressing that ASUU embarked on the strike as the option of last resort for the betterment of public universities.
“For the avoidance of doubt, Gombe State University remains a major beneficiary of several proceeds of ASUU strike in terms of infrastructures and members’ of staff training development.
“By our statistics, out of the existing 77 physical structures in the university, 57 were built by proceeds of ASUU strikes; with only 14 structures constructed by Gombe State Government,” said Jauro.
He said the figure showed that 74 per cent of physical structures such as lecture halls/theatres, office accommodations, laboratories; hostels and others are results of the ASUU strike.
He added that no fewer than 150 members of the academic staff in GSU have been trained for master’s and doctorate degrees through Tertiary Education Fund, TERTFUND and Needs Assessment Fund.
Jauro said the union is not intimidated by the threat of the university management to invoke the no-work-no-pay-doctrine, even as he encouraged the varsity management to focus its attention on how to address outstanding local issues in the university.
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