Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, had called on the
National Universities Commission, NUC, not to grant operational licence
to any state government that approaches it for such.
The
union made the call at a press briefing organised by its Lagos zone
comprising University of Lagos, Akoka; Olabisi Onabanjo University,
Ago-Iwoye; Lagos State University, Ojo; Tai Solarin University of
Education, Ijagun Ijebu and the Federal University of Agriculture,
FUNAAB, Abeokuta.
The briefing was held at UNILAG with all the chairmen and other officers of the chapters in attendance.
The
Lagos zone coordinator of the union, Prof. Olusiji Sowande, who spoke
at the briefing, said the group was strongly against the establishment
of new state universities at least for now based on the fact that many
of the existing ones were in serious deplorable conditions.
He said many states were not economically viable to run one university effectively let alone establish new one.
The
ASUU boss, who teaches Animal Science at FUNAAB named Ondo, Edo and
Bayelsa states as case studies, arguing that many state governments now
relied heavily on money from the TertiaryEducation Trust Fund, TETFund,
and the Needs Assessment Intervention Fund to run their universities.
According
to him, apart from the deplorable conditions of its university at
Akungba-Akoko and Okitipupa, Ondo State government still owed workers
three month salaries and yet the state governor, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko
went ahead to establish a third university.
“Also, Governor Adams
Oshiomole of Edo State who has failed in funding Ambrose Alli University
has also established another university, and likewise Governor Seriaki
Dickson of Bayelsa State established another university at a time
workers at the Niger Delta University had not be paid for five months.
“And
one common thread among these new universities is that they are all
sited in the communities of governors that brought them to life.
“So,
there is no need to establish other universities when the ones on
ground lack basic infrastructures and facilities to make them perform as
21st century universities,” he said.
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