The President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) Dr Chris Piwuna has vowed that the union will resist any attempt by any individual, no matter how highly placed, to take university land for personal gratification.
He gave the warning at the two-day strategic engagement organised by the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) for heads of beneficiary institutions, heads of governing councils and bursars in Abuja.
The ASUU president said the union will not allow anybody to take an inch of university land for personal gratification, whether the individual is a governor, a minister, a chairman of a political commission or a party official.
“We will not allow anybody to take an inch of our university land for personal gratification. Whether the individual is a governor, a minister, a chairman of a political commission or a party official, whoever that person may be, if he attempts to take an inch of our land, we will fight him to the hilt. It will not happen,” he said.
He said whoever attempts to take university land will be fought to the hilt, insisting that it will not happen.
Recall that ASUU had accused the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, of unlawfully allocating land owned by the University of Abuja (UniAbuja) to private companies and individuals.
He questioned how someone like Wike would suddenly be allocating university land to private individuals or business concerns, adding that the union would not allow that.
Piwuna said the union has told vice-chancellors that even if everybody takes a plot of land, it does not mean the union should surrender its institutional interests, and that ASUU will not stop speaking out.
The ASUU president linked the land issue to the need for well-thought-out education policies, noting that with the extensive experience some stakeholders have acquired in the education sector over the last 30 to 40 years, they have witnessed situations where policies were introduced without proper consideration.
Piwuna recalled a time when universities of technology began introducing programmes outside their original mandates, offering accounting, history and virtually every other course, a decision that eventually had to be reversed.
He reiterated that ASUU is not opposed to government education policies or reforms, but what the union demands is proper thinking, consultation and planning before such policies are introduced, adding that the country cannot continue with policies that have not been adequately thought through.
“We are not opposed to government education policies or reforms. What we demand is proper thinking, consultation and planning before such policies are introduced. We cannot continue with policies that have not been adequately thought through,” he said.
He said even now, the impression is that within the Federal Ministry of Education, policies are sometimes allowed to proceed simply because they fit into the agenda of a particular department or interest group, with insufficient coordination and careful consideration.
He said the consequences of poorly conceived policies have been seen in other sectors, citing the removal of fuel subsidy as an instance where challenges could have been better addressed through proper planning and consideration.
The ASUU president therefore urged colleagues in the Colleges of Education, including provosts and other stakeholders, to reason together and not introduce programmes today only to return tomorrow, when the Minister of Education has changed, to start thinking about how to reverse or restructure them.
“Let us reason together. Let us not introduce programmes today only to return tomorrow, when the Minister of Education has changed, to start thinking about how to reverse or restructure them,” he said.
He called on stakeholders to work together to ensure that whatever policies the government intends to introduce are properly examined and supported by adequate consultation.
He said nobody can dispute the importance of teachers, noting that everyone present was there because of teachers, but every policy the government intends to implement must be carefully considered before it is introduced.
Piwuna warned against situations where institutions rush to establish programmes simply because they appear lucrative or are expected to attract more students, only to encounter accreditation difficulties later.
He stated that programmes must be properly designed, adequately funded and capable of meeting accreditation requirements before they are introduced.