The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) Ibadan Zone on Thursday described the resolve of the Vice-Chancellor of University of Ibadan, Professor Idowu Olayinka to conduct 2020 convocation and foundation ceremonies as divisive and mischievous.
Condemning the move by VC, the union said it remains under the position of the national body of the Union that the ongoing strike is total and comprehensive.
Zonal Coordinator of the Union, Professor Ade Adejumo in a statement made available to DAILY POST on Thursday, disclosed that the stand of the Vice-Chancellor was a strategy to create acrimony among members of the Union at the University of Ibadan.
He applauded the principled position of the University of Ibadan branch of ASUU, with its release entitled Boycott of UI 2020 Convocation and 72nd Foundation Day Ceremonies.
Adejumo said as a united body, members of the union are currently struggling to reposition and revitalise the public universities to make them competitive universally.
He maintained that the Vice-Chancellor did not ask for a waiver to be granted from the Union to conduct the convocation, implying that the outgoing VC was aimed to break the strike.
In the spirit of the current ASUU strike, holding convocation ceremonies at this time would be a violation of the principle of the ongoing strike as we consider that such a move can only at best compromise the few gains of the current struggle to rescue public university education in Nigeria. The zone is equally persuaded that there was no request for a waiver for such to take place in the University of Ibadan, and none was requested by the University of Ibadan Administration.
No waiver has been granted for any Convocation ceremony during the ongoing strike action. The decision of UI Vice-Chancellor to conduct the Convocation at this period is mischievous, obnoxious and divisive.
“It is calculated to create confusion and acrimony among the members of the Union in UI. The VC is poised to break the strike in order to promote his selfish and personal interest since he has just a few weeks to leave office.”
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