By Baba Adamu Isa
Following the controversy surrounding the illegal suspension of all activities of Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics of Federal Polytechnic Bida branch, by the Institution’s Governing council a day to the commencement of second semester examinations, an action that necessitated the Dr Baba Aliyu Haruna-led management of the institution to hire a combined team of heavily armed security personnel to Invigilate the examinations which they were not the ones that set the examination questions, an action that has been strongly condemned by the national, Zone A leadership of the Union and National Association of Polytechnic Students (NAPS).
A solidarity letter addressed to the Chairman of ASUP-BD, signed by the Secretary-General of ASUP, National, Mr Lawani F Jimoh, said, “we have received reports of disturbing developments in industrial relations as well as academic activities in the Federal Polytechnic Bida, which we note with displeasure the purported suspension of Union activities by the Chairman of the Governing Council, in the Polytechnic, as well as the embarrassing pictures and videos of soldiers supervising an activity purporting to mean an examination in the Polytechnic”.
The letter sounded that, “we condemn these acts of impunity as the Governing Council of the Institution has no supervisory or regulatory powers and oversight of trade unions; as well as the desecretipn of academic norms in deploying soldiers for activities purporting to mean examinations”
“The national leadership of the Union is in solidarity with the chapter and shall be taking up these excesses of the Governing Council and management of the Polytechnic with the appropriate quartets”, the letter assured
The leadership of zone ‘A’ of the academic union, in a separate solidarity letter to the Chairman of the ASUP-BD branch, dated September 16th, signed by the Zonal Coordinator, Dr AbdulAzeez Ibrahim Badaru, said, “we salute the courage and resilience of the chairman and executives of the branch for demonstrating bravery and intellectual composure in the face of provocation in the past few days which has once again proven your commitment to selfless service and defence of the rights of your members”.
“The solidarity demonstrated by the entire congress has reaffirmed the truth in our eternal slogan – “A People United can never be defeated”, together we shall match on until victory is secured”, the letter stressed.