ASUU tackles government proliferation of varsities

The Academic Staff Union of Universities has tackled both the federal and state governments on the so-called proliferation of universities in the county.

In a press statement signed and addressed by the Zonal Chairman of the union in Sokoto, Professor Abubakar Sabo, the union identified the proliferation of universities as one of the issues that led to the strike action in 2020 and 2022.

The professor was flanked by representatives of eight Universities from the zone, which includes Usman Danfodiyo University, Sokoto State University, and Federal University Birnin Kebbi, among others, said part of the memorandum of understanding signed by ASUU and the Federal Government of Nigeria stressed the need to review the NUC Act to make it more potent in arresting the reckless and excessive establishment of universities.

“A joint committee of ASUU and government was set up, which submitted a draft bill to the National Assembly on this matter. However, that bill has not seen the light of day.

“The fallout of that is the massive and reckless manner in which federal and state governments are establishing universities without making adequate preparations for their funding.

“At the federal level, each senator is targeting establishing a university as part of their constituency projects, while visitors to state universities who could not fund existing universities are establishing two or more universities for political gains.

“This trend has put much stress on the intervention funds of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), which are diverted to establish new universities, contrary to the Fund’s law.”

He said the union was shocked to receive the report of a state governor who proudly declared that he would establish ten Universities before the end of his tenure, “as if they were model nursery and primary schools

“ASUU would explore all legal means to resist the pervasive moves by politicians to keep proliferating crisis centres for the children of the poor in the name of universities,” he added.

He also tackled the federal government on the issue of its members withholding salaries, which he said the federal government only paid four months out of the total seven and a half months owed members of the union.