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ASUU Accuses New Governing Council Of Failure To Resolve Lingering Crises In AAU, Ekpoma
By Ikhili Ebalu, Benin City
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Ambrose Alli University (AAU), Ekpoma Chapter has expressed grave concern that more than Three months after the inauguration of Dr. Frank Odafen-led Governing Council of the university, the crises facing the university are far from abating.
The staff union also decried what it described as “improper constitution of the Governing Council of the university after over three months of its inauguration.”
Rising from its congress held weekend on 1st November,2024, at the main campus of the University at Ekpoma, the union condemned the failure of the Governing Council to address the lingering crises in the university, accusing it of complicating them.
In a statement by the chairperson and Assistant Secretary of the local chapter of the union, Dr. Cyril Onogbosele and Dr. William Odion respectively, they enumerated the lingering unresolved problems to include the non-payment of outstanding salaries of many staff; non-deduction and non-remittance of third-party deductions (including ASUU dues and the welfare savings of the members of staff unions) by the University Administration; elections of internal members of the Governing Council of AAU, Ekpoma in breach of the University Law, and the inauguration of Truth and Reconciliation Panel on the crises in the University by the Governing Council without addressing critical concerns by stakeholders on its membership composition and terms of reference.
In particular, the statement berated the Governing Council for its failure to resolve the issue of non-payment of the salaries of many staff members up to thirty four (34) months after over three months of inauguration of the Council. It also expressed the Union’s discontent on non-payment of salaries of staff for October 2024 by the University authorities at the end of the month without stating any reason, describing it as unjust and an affront to the dignity of workers’ labour.
Additionally, the Union decried non-fulfillment of the promises earlier made by the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of Council, on behalf of Council, to resolve the issue of deducted ASUU check-off dues, welfare savings and other third-party deductions from September 2020 to November 2021 being withheld by the University Administration; to restore all staff to the university’s payroll and to ensure the restoration of deduction and remittance of third-party monies by the University Administration.
Concerning the conduct of elections of internal members (particularly Convocation and Senate Representatives) of Council by the University Administration, the Union condemned non-compliance of the conducted elections with the University’s extant law. It was noted that the different letters written to the Council/University Administration over the legal violations and anomalies observed in the conduct of the elections were not responded to, and that the various issues raised in the letters were also not addressed.
The statement further observed that since the inauguration of the Council on 18th July, 2024, it was still not fully and duly constituted. The Union insisted that the four candidates with the highest votes in the election of Senate Representatives to Council conducted on 8th October, 2024 should be sworn-in as Senate Representatives in Council and warned against the conduct of piecemeal elections of Senate Representatives in breach of the University’s Law.
The Union also reaffirmed its earlier resolution that the election of Convocation Representative to Council conducted in contravention of the University Law and best practices should be cancelled and appropriately done.
It described as reprehensible the inauguration of Truth and Reconciliation Panel on the crises in the University by the Council against the backdrop of no response to, and non-resolution of critical issues in the petition written to the University authorities over undue membership composition (including members of the Congress of Nigerian University Academics) of the Panel.
It described the action of Council as insensitive, political and a ploy to delay speedy resolution of critical issues in the crises bedeviling the university.
Consequently, the union rejected the Truth and Reconciliation Panel and resolved that members of the Union should not interact with the Panel until the issues raised in the petition by the Union were satisfactorily addressed by the university authorities.
