ASUU Finally Meet,To Brief Jonathan On Outcome

 

In a non-traditional trade dispute between the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and the federal government, the association had a secret National Executive Council (NEC ) meeting in an undisclosed venue in Kano, but refused to reveal the decision taken till after meeting with President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan.
A source close to ASUU revealed that the position of ASUU is 60-40 as at the time they held their NEC meeting. Sixty percent wanted the strike to be called off and 40 percent of them wanted the strike to continue.
Another source close to the association revealed that they were caught between the mourning of their former President, Professor Festus Iyayi and a need to put a halt to the strike action.

The meeting was behind closed doors and some members of the association were not even aware of the meeting on the grounds that they were not part of the leadership. This was unlike in the past, where all members were privy of such meetings.
They were said to be conveyed in two coaster buses and sneaked out of the university and met at another unscheduled location, Mambayya House, a research centre belonging to the university.
The source further added that ASUU decided to take their decision to President Jonathan before making it public. An action they decided on as a show of respect to the President for his willingness to see to the end of the crisis engulfing the ivory towers of knowledge for months.

Notice was not given by the association before holding the meeting unlike before. Neither did journalists invited for press briefing after the meeting. It was not held at the ASUU Secretariat of Bayero University, Kano. It will be recalled that the NEC meeting was billed to hold last weeks but was scuttled with the sudden death of the former ASUU President, Professor Festus Iyayi.

The death that is still making different people to think differently about it. A repeat of Iyayi’s untimely death was alleged to be avoided by the association.