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| University of Calabar main gate entrance |
Chairman of the UNICAL ASUU, Dr. James Okpiliya, in an interactive session with journalists in Calabar, the state capital, shortly after a meeting of the union, said the extensive damage would have been reduced if the police had responded to the school authorities’ appeal.
But denying the union’s position on the slow response, the state Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Etim Dickson, said it was not true that the security agency’s response was slow.
According to Dickson, an Assistant Superintendent of Police, there is a standing order that the police cannot intervene in campus crisis unless there is a written undertaken by the school authorities to that effect.
“It was only after that agreement was met that the Commissioner of Police, in collaboration with the university’s Vice-Chancellor, immediately swung into action. We condoned off all the entry and exit routes and took control of the situation,” Dickson added.
However, Okpiliya, while reacting to the destruction of the lecturers’ property said, “On Saturday morning when we thought the worst was over, the students regrouped and their focus was now on the VC’s office, GSS Centre, NUC Database Office, among others. It was when the carnage was getting out of hand that the police, eventually intervened.”
He also described the violent protest by the students of the university, which led to the wanton destruction of property including 63 vehicles belonging to the lecturers, as criminal and unbecoming of future leaders.
The union condemned the action, stressing that it could not understand the connection between the students’ grievances, if any, with the administration and the destruction of property of the lecturers.
In a statement by branch Chairman of ASUU, Dr. James Okpiliya, and the Secretary, Dr. Emmanuel Akpan, the union described the action as barbaric, insisting the problem could have been resolved amicably.
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It is quite unfortunate that in this our modern era, barbaric damages of that nature could be substained. However, I feel that if the authority had adopted a democratic oriented leadership, such action should have been avoided. Policies are made for human beings and evaluation is necessary. Moreso, I was taught that Policies are not to be too rigid. I would like to call on the authority of Unical to abolish the current ’Master servant’ relationship and establish a more responsive model.
ReplyDeleteThe destruction of properties in UNICAL is an aberration and unacceptable but is a clear demonstration of leadership failure on the part of the authorities
ReplyDeleteI blame u all. ASUU my nyash!
ReplyDelete