Students of the Federal Polytechnics, Ede Osun State are set to slug it out with academic staff of the institution over the strike announced by the union, the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnic, Ede chapter.
InsightMedia gathered that the management of the institution in a statement by the Registrar, I. T. Agboola directed resumption of academic activities on January 18, in line with the directive of the federal government.
The circular sighted by our Correspondent read in part, “Further to the directive of the Federal Government of Nigeria to Schools in the Country to resume for Academic activities the Rector, Dr. J.T. Adekolawole has directed that the Polytechnic should resume for Academic activities on Monday 18 January, 2021.
“The foregoing is for the information and compliance of all Staff and Students of the Polytechnic”.
However, the ASUP in a statement by the zonal secretary of ASUP, O. Akinola, said the union will not be resuming academic activities until a new board Chairman of the academic board is inaugurated.
The union said, “To this end, members are directed not to participate in any academic activity, including submission of scripts, submission of questions (POP or CBT), academic-related meetings and processing correction of results until further directives from National body.”
This decision has fueled anger of the students, who have been in the same level since 2019 as a result of COVID-19 lockdown and other crisis that have crippled learning activities on their campus.
The students union president, Kazeem Ajibade in a statement obtained by InsightMedia on Thursday said the academic union is positioning itself as enemy of the students.
He said, “We students have been in this same level since 2019. ASUP has wasted enough of our time. And today, on behalf of thousands of FPE students, I’m here to say enough is enough.
We great and innocent students of Federal Polytechnic Ede are fed up of incessant ASUP crisis. We have paid our school fees and other dues. But we have been being denied access to education.
It is a big pity that our academic staff union has not been helping matter. It has always renewed crises even after many attempts by independent mediators to facilitate peace and harmony in the polytechnic community.
We students are tired. We have been pushed to the wall. And we will not hesitate to fight back the injustice and inhumanity against ASUP.
For the ASUP to embark on this strike, at a period we are about to complete our first semester examination and commence a new semester, it is now obvious that ASUP FPE has proved us wrong on our assumption that they are our fathers, teachers and role models.
They have proved that they are not our friends. They have declared a serious war against us and established a strong line of enmity against the students.
Our union has remained neutral since our emergence as students union leaders. We have done this to foster peace, accord and agreement.
We shall do everything to invite relevant bodies and personalities to intervene and save students in the hand of ASUP FPE.”
