LAUTECH: ASUU, Gov. Makinde face off, strike imminent

The Ladoke Akintola University chapter of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) on Wednesday said it would go ahead with its strike and warned its members not to break off. 

The union in a statement jointly signed by its chairman Biodun Olaniran and secretary, Toyin Abegunrin after their congress, reacted to an alleged threat by Governor Seyi Makinde to stop payment of subvention until lecturers returned to classroom.

It stated that any branch that broke the strike would lose out from the benefits of the struggle, including infrastructure development.

ASUU said members had resolved to forge ahead with the strike and pursue it to a logical conclusion, which “is imminent.”

The union said the government should not see students as a target of the strike but as beneficiaries of ASUU strike as the intervention of most state governments in terms of subvention had been used as part-payment of salaries.

ASUU expressed shock to hear from education commissioner Rahman Abdu-Raheem that Mr Makinde’s government had paid LAUTECH 100 per cent subvention when the university administration claimed that only 55 per cent subvention came from the government.

It said the balance of 45 per cent had been sought by the university through internally generated revenue. The ASUU leaders stated that the commissioner’s claim on subvention had created further distrust between the management and the unions as to who was telling the truth.

(NAN)