Member House of Representatives and Deputy Governorship Candidate of the All Progressives Congress in the 2015 governorship election in Kogi State, Hon James Faleke, has condemned the recent proscription of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, Kogi State University chapter by Governor Yahaya Bello.
In a duly signed statement, Faleke said the proscription had no legal basis, as there is no provision in KSU Law 1991 that gives the governor such sweeping powers to undermine the rights of the lecturers to free association.
He expressed worries concerning what he termed the “increasingly dictatorial attitude of Governor Bello” never before witnessed in the country, saying it could cause trouble in the state.
“I was shocked when I heard the news … It beats my imagination how the … decision could advance the cause of educational development in the state,” Faleke said.
He advised that instead of a ban, what the governor should do was to “continuously engage the lecturers in an atmosphere of give-and-take.”
Faleke called for the “immediate reversal” of the proscription order and a return to “peaceful engagement with the lecturers in order to save the state another round of school shutdown.”
The Kogi State Governor, Yahya Bello had, earlier in the week, announced the proscription of ASUU on Kogi State University campus over the alleged refusal of the teachers to resume lectures until their demands for better working environment are met.
Credit: Punch