THE Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU)may be preparing for confrontation with some vice chancellors whom they described as not cooperating even though they will spend the money the union is asking the Federal Government to release.
Some of the vice chancellors have reportedly been intimidating lecturers in their institution and have ordered them back to the classrooms. Some have reportedly commenced examinations.
ASUU National President Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi said in an interview in Abuja that the attitude of some of the vice chancellors was worrisome.
He stressed that the union is prepared to engage such vice chancellors, when the ongoing strike is suspended or called off.
He expressed regret over some members of the union, who choose to betray their conscience by opting out of the strike.
Ogunyemi added that such members who might be aggrieved ought to take opportunity of available internal mechanism for resolving such crisis, adding that the union would address their issues at the appropriate time.
Giving three reasons why some members might have opted out of the strike, Ogunyemi said: “There are many reasons why some members have pulled out of the action. In some campuses, some vice chancellors are so uncooperative even though they are the ones, who will spend this money that ASUU is agitating for.
“In some places, some of them will misapply the fund. That is why you will continue to see crisis because when we go back, we are going to engage many vice chancellors. In some state universities, their governors are playing the ostrich, pretending to be funding their universities.
“Today, we call many state universities TETFUND universities because the bulk of their capital projects in the last 10 years came from TETFUND support and lately, the NEEDS assessment grant.
“Governors, who own such universities will be giving their vice chancellors directive to go and open the universities. They are just not being sincere to themselves because they are actually not doing what is expected of them.
“Another reason is because some of our members are aggrieved for reasons best known to them. Some have threatened to pull out of ASUU and go their own way.
“When you take it on the balance, you find out that within their inner self, they are not opposed to what we are asking for because the Earned Academic Allowances will go to them, revitalisation fund will go to their universities and where they have salary shortfall, it will be refunded to them.”
