Kwara State Governor, Alhaji AbdulFattah Ahmed, has stepped into the resolution of the crisis of confidence that has erupted between authorities of the state-owned university, KWASU and some of its lecturers over the formation of an academic staff union in the institution.

The crisis had led last week to the suspension of six of the lecturers on allegations of engagement in acts of gross misconduct, an allegation the teachers, who are also arrowheads in the formation of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) in the institution, immediately denied.

The affected lecturers are Professor Innocent Okoye, Department of Mass Communication, College of Information and Communication Technology (ICT); Dr. Dauda Adeniran Adeshola, Department of Mathematics, College of Pure and Applied Sciences; and, Mr. Dairo Kunle Paul, Department of Bioscience and Bio-technology, College of Pure and Applied Sciences.

Others are Dr. Gafaru Olayiwola Olorisade, Department of Business Education, College of Education; Professor Christopher Odetunde, Department of Aeronautic and Astronautic Engineering, College of Engineering and Technology; and Dr. Ayotunde Emmanuel Alao, Department of Mass Communication, College of Information and Communication Technology (ICT).

It was gathered that Ahmed’s intervention followed the service of a legal paper late last week on the management of the university by Mr. Femi Falana, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and counsel to the national body of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).

Sources familiar with the issue said that the government had to call a meeting of stakeholders twice over the weekend to douse the growing tension which was seen as capable of affecting the stability of the six-year old institution.

“Yes, we have had meetings with them on two occasions now and all points to the fact that the crisis will be resolved amicably”, a source who was privy to the meeting but had no authority to speak on its outcome with the press said yesterday.