Tension in Benue State University over alleged plot by ASUU against the VC
Reports have emerged indicating that the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) at Benue State University, Makurdi is calling for the removal of the current Vice Chancellor, Professor Tor Iorapuu. The union has reportedly embarked on a strike to demand the Vice Chancellor's removal. However, some stakeholders in the education sector have countered that ASUU does not have the mandate to demand the removal of a sitting Vice Chancellor.
Sources within the institution have indicated that the ongoing strike is not necessarily connected to the welfare of the staff, as the university is up to date with the payment of salaries and earned allowances. It has been revealed that the university students are also planning to stage a protest in Makurdi, the Benue State capital, over the prolonged strike, which commenced in the wake of examinations.
These stakeholders have asserted that the situation is not a typical case of a union fighting for its members' welfare. Instead, it is a personal issue being advanced by those who allegedly lost out in their pursuit of the Vice Chancellorship position. The policies of Professor Iorapuu on financial management seem to be one of the issues that most staff at the management level are not comfortable with, hence the lingering crises.
A meeting convened by the Secretary to the State Government, Professor Joseph Alkali, last week ended in a deadlock. The issues presented before the government by the union members were purportedly personal. During the meeting, when the SSG asked the union to explain its grievances, instead of talking about official concerns or welfare, they demanded the removal of the Vice Chancellor for the simple reason that he was brought from outside the institution to head it.
One of the sources who was present at the meeting revealed that the SSG became furious and called off the meeting since there was no substance in the union members' presentation.
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