The University of Ilorin branch of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) have joined the ongoing two week warning strike declared by the national body of the Union on Monday. This development comes as shocking to many as this is the first time in nearly twenty years that lecturers of the Academic institution will down tools.
There had been a split in the UNILORIN branch of ASUU for some years which led to the lecturers of the institution largely rejecting industrial action calls by the national body of the union.
The feud was resolved in July of 2019 paving the way for the local branch to join forces with the national body once more.
The refusal of the lecturers to honour calls for industrial actions over the years has led to an uninterrupted academic calendar for the last two decades. All that however seems to be coming to an end.
According to the chairman of ASUU UNILORIN, who spoke on the school’s uninterrupted academic calendar, everything that has a beginning must have an end.
“We cannot be part of a body and say we don’t want to function with the body. The question everybody should ask is how did ASUU get bad like this? It is because we have an irresponsible government. And we have a dishonourable minister of finance who would not want to pay people, after working to earn a pay.”
The branch chairman said further that all academic activities in the institution, including the ongoing first semester examinations will be put on hold for the duration of the warning strike.
“ASUU University of Ilorin is on strike and the strike is total. The lecturers are not involved in any official matter.”
He also laid emphases on the fact that academic staff of the institution did not get any special recognition for refusing to join strikes called by the national body of ASUU in the last twenty years.
“We have not benefited anything from government for us not going on strike. Rather, we have been maligned by our colleagues. We have been labelled traitors by our colleagues.
“When some people go to struggle for something and you’re reaping from the benefit of their struggle, what moral right do you have to lay claims to those things?” he lamented.