Academic activities resumed at the Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko (AAUA), on Monday, as some lecturers of the institution complied with the directive by the management of the school to commence lectures.
Although lectures have not started fully in all the departments, a visit to the school campus showed that lectures had started in some of the departments of the university, with students in classrooms.
It was observed that lectures were on in some of the faculties including Arts and Education.
It was also gathered that timetables for lectures for the second semester of the 2012/2013 academic session had been released by each of the departments, to signal the commencement of academic exercise.
Also meetings of the heads of departments in each of the faculties were held to ensure proper courses allocation among the lecturers.
The vice chancellor of the university, Professor Femi Mimiko and principal officers of the insitution went round the campus to monitor the level of compliance to the directive.
Speaking after the monitoring exercise, Mimiko expressed satisfaction, saying the development showed that about 60 per cent of the academic staff were back on campus.
“I am satisfied with the level of response that we have received so far, viz-a-viz the directive that management gave that lectures should resume today.
“I have personally gone round and I also sent my principal officers to go round the classrooms and it was discovered that quite a number of classes held.
“As we speak, lecturers are in the classrooms teaching, yes the students are just coming back to campus, that is not unexpected, but the good thing there is, more than half of the total number of lecturers have indicated their desire to teach and they are all over the place teaching, I hope and believe that from tomorrow, the situation will improve,” he said.
Mimiko said it was a matter of individual choice if a parent chose to listen to ASUU and keep his child at home, adding that there was little or nothing that could be done to that.
Also, students and lecturers of the Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT), on Monday, returned to school, following a directive by the school authorities.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported that the authorities had directed them to resume classes on December 2 and commence preparations for the 2012/2013 second semester examination.
NAN correspondent who monitored the situation at the Enugu and Agbani campuses of the university reported that the students were in their various departments exchanging pleasantries and checking the notice boards.
At the faculties of engineering and management sciences in the Enugu campus, students in their numbers were copying the second semester examination timetables pasted on the notice boards.
The lecturers, on the other hand, held a meeting with the governing council of the university at the Agbani campus on the resumption of work.
Addressing the lecturers, chairman of the council, Chief Chilo Offiah, appealed to them to sheathe their sword and return to classes in the interest of the students.
Offiah thanked the lecturers for attending the meeting and assured them that the council would do all it could to ensure the improvement of their welfare.
The executive members of the ESUT branch of the ASUU did not, however, attend the meeting.
Meanwhile, it was a different situation at the Enugu campus of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), as only a few students and lecturers were on campus.
NAN reported that the few lecturers were in their various offices, while the non-academic staff members were busy working.
Some of the lecturers who spoke with NAN on conditions of anonymity said they were waiting for directives from both the school authorities and the ASUU branch.
Read more at Tribune