Ebonyi university reopens for lecture

The management of Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki, in eastern Nigeria on Monday ordered all the lecturers and students to return to classes immediately.

In a statement issued in Abakaliki, the Registrar, Mr Sam Egwu, said academic activities would resume on all the campuses of the university on Tuesday 26 November, saying the authorities have the support of 80 per cent of the academic staff.

The academic staff, in compliance with the directive of the national union, the Academic Staff Union of Universities, went on strike from 1 July. ASUU is still seeking an audience with President Goodluck Jonathan to reach a decision on whether to call off the strike.

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The ESU statement said: “we have waited patiently for the Federal Government and ASUU to resolve the impasse (strike) to no avail. The management of Ebonyi State University has, therefore, resolved to commence academic activities on Tuesday.

“We, therefore, use this medium to inform all concerned that teaching and learning will begin fully on Tuesday, to enable us to cover what we have lost to the strike” , the statement said.

The decision to reopen the school was reached at a management meeting held on 20 November.

It said “80 per cent of the lecturers in attendance agreed that they should ignore ASUU’s nationwide strike and return to class.
“The lecturers are not happy that the strike is lingering and therefore gave their full support for the resumption of school on Tuesday”, the source said.

The source, however, said that Chairman of ASUU in the university did not attend the meeting.

The chairman, Prof. Ndubuisi Idenyi, in an interview with NAN, dissociated the branch of ASUU from the decision to resume studies.
“The strike is still in progress until we get directives from our national leadership”, he told NAN.

Idenyi said the leadership of ASUU in the university was ready for a showdown with the school’s management if it decided to punish lecturers who defied the return-to-duty order.