Permit me to express my view on the ongoing logjam at the Obafemi Awolowo University, where I am a 300-level student of Law.
I have carefully studied the crisis at the institution and I have come to two conclusions.
One, the entire disagreement between NASU and SSANU, and the school management under the leadership of Prof. Ayobami Salami, is a storm in a teacup. That is, it is a molehill from which a mountain is needlessly being made out of. Any matter that cannot be solved through dialogue and decent engagement is not worthy of the attention of civilised people. NASU and SSANU displeasure is much more about unpaid allowances, and not the dislike for the new Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Salami. If the unions will not sit at a table to iron out issues with the management, then they should go back to work and stop wasting students’ and lecturers’ time!
Two, the intervention of the Federal Government by dissolving the University Governing Council is defective and shows an inadequate crisis management capacity of the government. For the peace of the school, the dissolution cannot stand. The members of ASUU and other well-meaning stakeholders must rise up to prevent the FG from getting away with this infraction and breach of laws. If they do not, in the nearest future, the FG will find another reason to sack a Governing Council and install anybody as Vice-Chancellor, contrary to the provision of the University Autonomy Law 2003 (as amended). Impunity must not be allowed to win.
- Kadiri Jamiu,
Faculty of Law,
Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife.
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