KWASU, Staff Disagree over Formation of Academic Union
Hammed Shittu
Crisis is currently looming at the Kwara State University (KWASU) following the decision of the management to stop academic staff of the institution from establishing a branch of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) in the university.
THISDAY learnt that the development might be connected to the eight months salaries the management is owing academic staff and other allied workers of the institution.
It was gathered that the university that was established in 2009 by former Governor Bukola Saraki has been battling with non-payment of workers for past few months.
THISDAY learnt that the academic staff recently inaugurated KWASU’s ASUU caretaker committee in preparation for the formation of a full blown ASUU. The Chairman of the Caretaker Committee is Dr. Dauda Adeshola, while the Secretary is Dr. AbdulGaniyu Salau.
But management was said to describe any form of unionism in the school as illegal.
Shortly after his inauguration, Adeshola urged members to be resolute in their determination to bargain for better condition of service for members. He promised that the association would not contravene laid down rules and regulation of the institution.
A letter dated August 17, 2015 and signed by Adeshola said: “this is to officially inform the university management and the academic community that ASUU KWASU chapter was officially inaugurated Thursday the 13th of August, 2015 where a caretaker committee was set up for the take-off.
The letter titled ‘Inauguration of ASUU, KWASU Chapter’ was addressed to the registrar; it added that “the inauguration which took place at e-place Plaza, Malete had five pro-term officers after a keenly contested election. They were elected to run the affairs of the union until
a new exco is elected.
“We pledge the loyalty of the union to the university authorities and the government of Kwara State. Kwara State University established in 2009 is now about to witness union activities after the five- year waiting period stipulated by both the National Universities Commission ( NUC) and KWASU conditions of service and regulations.”
In a circular, the Principal/Protocol Officer of the university, Hamidat Yusuf, described the meetings that cumulated in the emergence of the caretaker committee as “illegal, cultic and combative unionism.”
The circular reads: “This is to inform the university community that the manage- ment is aware of groups of KWASU staff holding clandestine meetings in odd venues in Malete in the name of cultism or combative unionism.
“The university wishes to warn all concerned that this is illegal under KWASU rules and no nefarious clandestine group, no matter what name it disguised itself, will be recognised by the university. The university only recently attained five years of peaceful and purposeful academic calendar.
“An acceptable legal unionism for students, academic and non-academic staff will be ushered in within an open framework with active participation of management and all concerned. No amount of effort by the handful 17 staff that met outside the campus and held cultist meeting to create chaos in the school will succeed.
“The police, office of the university safety and other security agencies have been put on alert to monitor these nefarious individuals and each of the 17 staff or any other that that might be misguided is hereby warned.
It continued: “A timetable will be published at the appropriate time for peaceful unionism. Some gangs are obviously sad about the peaceful nature of KWASU in the face of national difficulties and seek to cause disaffection with government.”