Strike: Petroleum varsity workers defy FG

There seems to be no respite for students of the Federal University of Petroleum Resources, Ugbomro, Delta State, as the Academic Staff Union of Universities in the institution on Tuesday defied the Federal Governments directive to resume work immediately.The situation had degenerated when the Governing Council which was purportedly dissolved a day earlier by the government suspended the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Babatunde Alabi, an action the Ministry of Education rescinded.The Minister of Education, Prof Rukkayat Rufai had ordered the reinstatement of the VC, the Registrar and the bursar who were supposedly sacked by the council.It was learnt that none of the courses in the five-year-old school had been accredited by the National Universities Commission, a situation which had hindered the graduation of the first set of students for the past five years.When the institution was visited on Tuesday, various factions to the crisis were seen holding separate meetings with a few workers still hanging around the school premises.In a statement released after its congress, the ASUU, FUPRE chapter, maintained that it would continue with the strike until the recall of the VC was voided and the university autonomy restored.The statement, which was jointly signed by the Chairman, Dr. Akpofure Rim-Rukeh, and the Secretary, Dr. Duke Okoro, declared that though the union would work closely with the Prof. Alhassan Bichi panel, sent in by the Federal Government, it would not bow to the threat by the Federal Government to resume or be sanctioned.The union said, "After reviewing the current state of affairs in the university as it affects the ongoing crisis which culminated in the militarisation of the campus with mobile policemen and private security outfits with dogs patrolling everywhere, we resolve as follows:"We are prepared to work closely with the peace team headed by Prof. Bichi, which has addressed the staff and all stakeholders on the FUPRE crisis. Congress also resolved that EXCO should develop the memorandum with input from members to be submitted to the peace team sent by the Nigeria Universities Commission."
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