Date: 2016-08-23

Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), University of Ilorin branch, on Monday cautioned the national executive council (NEC) of the union against further foisting its unpopular leaders on members of the university.

In a statement issued in Ilorin and signed by its branch chairman, Dr. Usman AbdulRaheem, a copy of which was made available to THISDAY in Ilorin, the union said its warning is aimed at improving academic excellence of the students and improved welfare development to its teeming members.

It also berated the national executive council of the ASUU for its recent comment against the recent appointment of the immediate past vice channcelor of the university, Professor Ish'aq Oloyede, as the Chief Executive Officer/ Registrar of Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) by President Muhammadu Buhari.

According to the statement, "What the ASUU NEC is lamenting is its serial failure to foist unpopular leadership on the branch. "Majority of our members had insisted and are still insisting that ASUU NEC will continue to fail woefully and sulk until it embraces the elementary democratic principles in the election of leadership.

"We advise the executive of the union to retrace its path back to the dreams of our founding fathers- Mahmud Tukur, late Festus Iyayi and Attahiru Jega, embrace democratic norms and meritocracy. "We consider the recent negative observation by ASUU-NEC, as published in some sections of the media, on Professor I.O. Oloyede's well deserving appointment, as baseless, reckless and ill–conceived.

"It is yet another evidence of the meddlesomeness of a union (leadership) that has lost track of the laid down objectives of its cherished founding fathers. "Otherwise, what kind of reasoning will produce such an outburst over a well and widely acknowledged appointment!.

"The purging of Unilorin of anarchy, academic idiocy and laziness, which the ASUU NEC is grieving over, has yielded positive result in terms of academic productivity, integrity and stable calendar in Unilorin. "These have been widely acclaimed and appreciated by Nigerians and non Nigerians. This feat has become the envy and goal of many higher institutions in Nigeria. Professor I.O. Oloyede's achievements and antecedents in other areas are iconic, intimidating, as well as outstanding."