Education

Again, ASUU rejects new university governing councils; Give Reasons

Published by Tope Fakinlede on June 17th, 2024.

Again, ASUU rejects new university governing councils; Give Reasons

ASUU Criticizes Newly Appointed University Governing Councils

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has once again voiced its dissatisfaction with the recently appointed governing council members for federal universities, labeling the new composition as worse than the previous one.

ASUU’s national president, Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke, shared his concerns in an exclusive interview with the Nigerian Tribune over the weekend. He criticized the appointment of “retired politicians” rather than technocrats to these positions.

“Examine the list closely, and you’ll see it is dominated by retired politicians, referred to as ‘honorable’ this and ‘honorable’ that. This situation is appalling. We cannot effectively manage our universities this way if we aim for genuine development,” Osodeke stated.

ASUU’s primary issue with the university governing councils is not just about the current list’s composition but the legality of constituting new councils. The previous councils, dissolved over ten months ago, had not completed their terms as stipulated by the University Act. ASUU argues that the Federal Government should have allowed the previous councils to finish their tenures instead of appointing new ones.

The union contends that playing partisan politics with university governance undermines the pursuit of quality education, which is essential for Nigeria’s economic prosperity.