Few days after the National Industrial Court ordered the the Academic Staff Union of Universities to return to the class and end its seven month old strike the Federal Government has directed the vice chancellors of the institutions to reopen the universities and allow academic activities to resume.
According to a letter reportedly sighted by PUNCH newspapers which was signed by Sam Onazi, Director of Finance and Account of the National Universities Commission, on behalf of the Executive Secretary, Prof. Abubakar Rasheed, the government has directed vice chancellors to open the institutions without further delay.
The order to the vice chancellors has come days after the order which the ASUU had appealed against.
The union said it is fighting against poor funding of universities and poor remuneration of its members.
Attempts to speak with officials in government-owned universities had not proved successful at the time of filing this report.
A professor at one of the universities who spoke with the NPO Reports Monday morning said the government was complicating the crisis at the universities adding that attempts to force the teachers back to class would not work.
Details later…