Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU), Bauchi branch, has called for a public retraction and the resignation of former Bauchi State governor, Isa Yuguda, as chairman of the Governing Council of the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN).
The union made the demand over comments attributed to Mr Yuguda at a National Assembly public hearing on a bill seeking to change ATBU Bauchi from a technology-based university to a conventional university.
ASUU said it was “shocked and stunned” by the remarks.
This was contained in a statement signed by the branch chairperson Angulu Haruna on Tuesday.
The union called on the executive secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC), the Minister of Education, the Bauchi State governor and President Bola Tinubu, as visitor to the university, to intervene.
According to ASUU, Yuguda criminalised opposition to the bill by declaring that anyone against the proposed change was a criminal.
The union also accused him of disparaging professors who spoke against the bill, quoting him as saying, “Who the hell are professors for goodness sake!”
Part of the statement read, “The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) is stunned by the outbursts of a former Governor of Bauchi State, Malam Isa Yuguba, at a recent public hearing on a Bill to change the mandate of ATBU Bauchi from Technology based University to conventional University at the National Assembly. Malam Isa Yuguda while addressing the media, criminalized anybody who is not in support of the Bill, as he puts it, ‘any person who is against turning the University into a conventional University is a criminal.
“The former Governor was not happy with the Professors who spoke against the said Bill because of its violation of the University autonomy and in registering his frustration he exclaimed that ‘who the hell are Professors for goodness sake!’”
The union said attendance at a public hearing is a constitutional right and described the comments as “appalling and unfortunate,” especially coming from a former state chief executive.
ASUU also raised concerns about Isa Yuguda’s role as Pro-Chancellor of NOUN, stating that his comments showed “total disregard” for professors and raised questions about his competence, integrity and suitability to oversee a university system.
The union further criticised a video message by Ladan Salihu, a former director-general of the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), in which he was said to have criticised ATBU management and the NUC for opposing the bill.
ASUU said it was disturbed by Mr Salihu’s alleged claim that those against the bill were “the biggest enemies of the people of Bauchi State,” adding that the statement amounted to a threat to university autonomy and academic freedom.
