Despite the ongoing strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), the management of Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, Oyo State, has announced the continuation of academic activities for the 2021/2022 academic session.
However, LAUTECH Chapter of ASUU, yesterday, dissociated itself from the announcement, urging parents and students to disregard it
The institution, in a circular last Thursday signed by its Registrar, Dr. Kayode Ogunleye, and titled, ‘Release to Staff and Students: Continuation of the First Semester of the 2021/2022 Academic Session’, said that academic activities would resume on May 26, 2022.
The statement read in part: “Upon the directive of the Visitor to the university, the management hereby informs all staff and students that the university will continue its academic activities for the first semester of the 2021/2022 academic session on Thursday, May 26, 2022.
“The amended academic calendar for the semester will soon be made available. Staff and students are hereby enjoined to abide by this directive.
On behalf of the Acting Vice Chancellor, Prof. M. 0. Liasu, I welcome all students back to the campus and wish them a crisis-free semester.”
Nevertheless, LAUTECH chapter Chairman and Secretary of ASUU, Prof. Biodun Olaniran and Toyin Abegunrin, respectively, said the academic staff were fully on strike in line with the directives of the national body of the union and would not return to class until directed by the national leadership.
They urged parents, guardians, students and the public to note that their members were not in a position to conduct any academic activities.
They maintained that the strike was not targeted at the vice chancellor, the students or the university community but focused on the struggle to reposition public-funded universities in Nigeria, which would benefit the children of the masses, the university community and the country.
According to them, the demands of the union were yet to be met by the Federal government neither has the LAUTECH administration paid the Earned Academic Allowances being owed Staff.
The statement read in part: “Our Union is in receipt of the Memo from the University Registrar calling for resumption of academic activities for the First Semester of the 2021/2022 Academic Session on Thursday, May 26, 2022. The ASUU LAUTECH branch wishes to dissociate itself from the said memo.
“This is against the principles of our union and we wish to inform the general public that our branch is actively participating and also in full support of the ongoing national struggle.
“As you are aware, LAUTECH branch of the ASUU is involved in the ongoing, 12 weeks roll-over strike by our union called to draw the attention of the Federal Government to implement Memorandum of Action (MoA) signed with ASUU in 2020.
“The MoA encapsulates all that needed to be done to make our public universities (federal or state) internationally competitive. The decision to embark on this action was communicated to the university administration.
“As clearly stated by our union, the ‘on-going strike action embarked upon by ASUU is not intended against any vice-chancellor, university administration, students or any group within or outside the system’.
“It must be emphasised that the strike action has not been vacated and neither has the subsisting demands made by LAUTECH branch on the university administration been addressed.