ASUU: ‘You Can’t Force Lecturers Back To Classroom’ – NANs Rejects Court Order

The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has kicked against the decision of the National Industrial Court ordering the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to call off its ongoing strike.

In a statement on Wednesday, the NANS Public Relations Officer, Giwa Temitope, said that the court should have ordered the FG to sort out the striking lecturers instead of suspending the strike, adding that the judgement betrays equity.

The statement reads, “Our attention has been drawn to the news of a court judgment mandating the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to call of its 7 month strike. As an association, we feel disturbed to read the news of the judgment because we believe that it betrays equity.

“Ordinarily, the Federal Government is not meant to have dragged ASUU to court. But, the fact that they had to drag ASUU to court is a signal that this government cannot handle crisis. And, we want to state categorically that the court cannot force members of ASUU back to lecture theatres.

“And, as it stands today, with that court judgment, we maintain that the court has not resolved the problem and we reject the judgment in strong terms. The court could have said that the Federal Government should go and pay rather than say that lecturers who are on strike should go back to classrooms. We were expecting the court to have understood that lecturers are on contract of personal service hence, they cannot be compelled to render a service they don’t want to render.

“The only remedy to this strike action is for the Federal Government to accede to the demands of ASUU which the government willingly entered into with them and properly fund education.”

THE WHISTLER reported that the court granted the motion filed by the Federal Government that the strike be suspended earlier today.

Justice Polycarp Hamman, who gave the ruling, said in the interest of justice and fairness to all, he would grant the federal government’s request citing damage and conduct of parties.

He agreed that the FG, who is the owner of the federal universities, stands to lose more if the application was not granted.