Crisis Hits ASUU in Sokoto

 

There is an indication that the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) Sokoto State University chapter may embark on indefinite strike.

It was gathered that among the issues debated by the Union recently included the poor funding of the university by the state government and the nonpayment of academic allowance owed the staff of the university.

A lecturer in the university, who spoke on the condition of anonymity on Monday, told journalists that the strike become inevitable as government felt defiant to their plight.

According to him, “We have waited patiently for the state government to pay  academic allowance owed us but to no avail, so we have no other option than to embark on strike, maybe the government might be touched to listen to us.”

 

The lecturer chided the state government and the leadership of ASUU for compromising its stand, stressing that their colleagues at the Usman Danfidio University had received the allowance since August 2019.

Also, a lecturer at the department of physics who didn't want his name mentioned in the media because he was not authorised to talk to the media, said they have lost confidence on ASUU leadership under Dr. Ahmad Sifawa, adding that it (ASUU) has sold itself to the government.

He further explained that there was certain amount of money that usually comes to the school as empress, which he said the government stopped sending over a year now.

The lecturer frowned at the attitude of the state government to poor funding, adding that the school internal revenue is nothing to write home about as indigenous students which constituted 98 percent of the university population were exempted from paying fees.

He quoted an instance where some staff members of the university were on scholarship to further their studies under the  school bonds and the school have no money to settle their school fees, a situation he described as embarrassing.

When contacted, the Chairman of Sokoto State University chapter of ASUU, Dr. Ahmad Sifawa, explained that he has not compromised his stand, saying before the Union could embark on strike, there are laid down procedure to follow.

Sifawa disclosed that the Union has written to the school registrar for onward delivery to the governor, stressing that if nothing is done within a short period of time, the Union would have no other choice than to embark on an indefinite strike.

However, at the time of filing this report, the Union was having a meeting with its members.