UNIOSUN, KASU Tackle Osodeke Over “Qvack Universities” Statement

You can verify that Kwara State University is not an ASUU member because they have not joined. You can check to see if Osun State University was expelled from ASUU for bad behaviour.

In LASU that you mentioned, we are in court with LASU because they sacked all our executives more than five years ago, so they were not part of this struggle.

“Ekiti State University… ASUU don’t run a University, the government have a right to say we have reopened, our members have the right to say that’s good for you, we are not teaching, we are on strike as it happened in Gombe State University, as it happened in Yobe State University, you can go and check as it happened in Kaduna State University so don’t cite those examples, they are irrelevant.”

“Talk about the issue, is Ibadan on strike, is UNN on strike, is ABU on strike, is BUK on strike, is Maiduguri on strike, is Lagos on strike, Let us talk about the important ones not those quacks.”

ASUU has been on strike since February 14, 2022.

EKSU, UNIOSUN, KASU react:

PRESS RELEASE

EKSU NOT A QUACK UNIVERSITY: ASUU PRESIDENT’S STATEMENT, RECKLESS

26th August, 2022

The attention of the Management of Ekiti State University, Ado-Ekiti (EKSU) has been drawn to the interview granted the Arise Television by the National President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Professor Emmanuel Osodeke where he mentioned some state-owned universities in Nigeria as quacks and irrelevant. In the same press interview with Dr. Reuben Abati, he listed some first generation universities as the ones that matter most in the ongoing struggle by ASUU.

The Management of EKSU views this denigrating remark about some universities, coming from the National President of ASUU as unfortunate, reckless and unwarranted.
Ekiti State University, Ado- Ekiti is currently the 14th best university in Nigeria out of about 200 universities (Federal, State & Private) and the 2nd best State University according to the recent Webometric ranking of universities.
Apart from the above, the university (EKSU) has nearly all its academic programmes accredited by the National Universities Commission (NUC) and relevant professional regulatory bodies. The university is proud to have many top rated globally recognised academics, and its alumni are making waves both Nationally and Internationally. By the grace of God, Mr. Biodun Oyebanji , the Governor-elect of Ekiti State is an alumnus and a former lecturer in the University. Even in ASUU, a number of staff of our university had served and still serving in various capacities at zonal and national levels including but not limited to Professor Afolabi Popoola, Dr. Sikiru Eniola, Profs. Eddy Olanipekun, Ayan Adeleke and Olu-Olu Olufayo.

Therefore, categorizing EKSU as among the quack and irrelevant universities is a testimony to the fact that the ASUU President is probably uninformed and/or is bereft of ideas. This arrant nonsense coming from Comrade Osodeke is totally unacceptable and condemnable.

The Management calls on Professor Osodeke to toe the path of honour by retracting the provocative remark and tender an unreserved apology without further delay.

Bode Olofinmuagun,
Head, Directorate of Information & Corporate Affairs.

EKITI STATE UNIVERSITY,
ADO – EKITI.
Directorate of Information & Corporate Affairs.

ASUU President a careless talker, should get educated – UNIOSUN VC replies Osodeke’s comment calling universities quack

The Vice-Chancellor, Osun State University (UNIOSUN), Professor Odunayo Clement Adebooye reacting:

“ASUU President should go and check my profile, I cannot preside on quack university. He has expressed his opinion and that is his, the University he teaches does not have our achievements.

“He was here this year and commended the quality of what he saw here, the infrastructure, only a few universities. Osun state university takes very serious exceptions for having mentioned the institution as a quack university.

“He shouldn’t talk about what he doesn’t know if he wants to continue being a true professor. A true professor finds facts and bases of whatever they say, he should get educated, I challenge him to get educated.

“Referring UNIOSUN as a quack university is a careless statement and not expected from ASUU President who is a professor; who must not make a statement without facts.” the VC said.

RE: A STATEMENT BY ASUU NATIONAL PRESIDENT DESCRIBING KASU AND OTHER STATE-OWNED UNIVERSITIES AS QUACKS

The whole world was taken aback by the unguided, misleading and derogatory statement by the ASUU National President, Prof. Victor Emmanuel Osodeke during an interview with Arise TV on Friday, 26th August, 2022 in which he irresponsibly referred to some State-Owned Universities in Nigeria including Kaduna State University as quacks.

It is obvious that by such a statement, ASUU, represented by the unguarded vituperatons of its chosen President, is not actually struggling for a better educational system in Nigeria but for personal and irrespondible aggrandisement. One may wonder whether the Professor of Soil Science really understands what the word quack represents. Quack means a person who dishonestly claims to have knowledge and skill in some field with little or no foundation, as better exemplified by professionals.

For the benefit of hindsight, KASU is a new generation University and the second most-sought State-Owned University as well as the fastest growing in Nigeria, which was established 18 years ago with eminent scholars like Prof. Idris A. Abdulkadir, OFR and Prof. Abubakar A. Rasheed, MFR as the pioneer Council members. These scholars-administrators made sure that the appointments of qualified Lecturers was never compromised. The foundation and ethical determination to sustain same has remained the basic principle of engaging academic & non-academic staff.

By the foregoing, the general public may wish to note as follows:
1. KASU is recognised by NUC as a standard University.
2. KASU has some of the best brains that is competing favourably with their counterparts around the globe. The world No 4 best polymer chemist is in KASU.
3. Lecturers in KASU have attracted grants both locally and internationally and are highly rated.
4. KASU graduates are rated among the best in the world and enjoying scholarships from different parts of the country and the globe.
5. KASU has members in ASUU, and it is unfortunate if the ASUU President is saying that they are quacks, while enjoying monthly check-off dues from their salaries. Does this not gives good reason for every reasonable academic staff in the University to pull out from the Union for this labeling and stereotyping?

I like to mention here that the highest stage of irresponsibility is insulting fellow colleagues in the academia. I thought leadership in the academia is about mutual respect and mentoring while also living by good example which the ASUU National finds it too tasking? The ASUU President was a bigot for neither mentioning Ambrose Alli University, where he came from which has pulled out from the strike long before KASU Management decided to resume academic activities in spite of the strike, nor did he refer to his own University as quack.

By resuming academic activities as our good conscience in KASU dictates, should never be a reason for us to be insulted and stereotyped. After all, ASUU claimed to be on strike for:
* Rejecting IPPIS for UTAS (KASU has nothing to do with how other employees are paid in a country where education is in the concurrent list)
* Renegotiate the 2009 agreement (KASU Governing Council informed lecturers they shouldn’t worry that after negotiation between FG & ASUU led by its loquacious President, it’ll look into how to implement the agreement without encumbrances)
* Release funds to revitalize the infrastructure of the Universities (release of funds is being determined by the economy and income of government and not by any strike action)
*: Pay outstanding EAA to date (Kaduna State has paid far more to its lecturers the EEA than any FG University did to its own Universities)
* Release of the White Paper on Visitation Panels (This has nothing to do with State universities & KASU should not stunt its progress in a protracted strike that is becoming unreasonably insensitive)
Lest i forget, when ASUU in KASU joined the strike in 2019 and govt paid the 40% salary for work done for the month, ASUU National did virtually nothing positive beyond ranting so that the outstanding 60% has not been paid till date. If someone thinks the National President of ASUU can go on strike because of this, is only joking!!!
Let me use this medium to call on Academic staff on strike in KASU to reason and be more concerned with their University and people than the irritating attitude of their irrational leader that label’s them as Quacks.

Best wishes.

Signed:
Adamu Nuhu Bargo
P.R.O-KASU
For: Management
26th August, 2022