Members of the University Senate and indeed ASUU have expressed satisfaction over the decision of the President to intervene in the UNILAG crisis. The ASUU-UNILAG Chairman, Dr. Dele Ashiru, said it was the right step in the right direction. SSANU on the other hand, does not feel that the decision is right.
According to SSANU through its National President, Comrade Samson Ugwoke, the Federal government might have invariably broken the law it sought to protect by allowing the Senate to convene to selecting an Ag. VC without a substantive VC to call for the meeting; stating that it is an aberration as the Registrar is not empowered by law to summon Senate unilaterally.
SSANU equally faulted the composition of the Visitation Panel, which it said, was made up of mostly professors who are members of ASUU and former vice chancellors and as such will seek to protect the interest of the embattled VC who is one of their own. SSANU added that a fair and unbiased panel representative of all stakeholders in the university system should have been included at least a retired registrar, a retired bursar, and a prominent individual with undoubted integrity who should be a former pro-chancellor, and not a professor, as chairman of the panel.
SSANU also questioned the rationale behind Babalakin’s ‘suspension’ instead of the entire Council
Reacting to this, UNILAG ASUU Chairman, Dr. Dele Ashiru describes SSANU's position as not only illogical, but fallacious and preposterous. He debunked the claim that the Visitation Panel was not representative, stating that it included a former Bursar as well as a lawyer and decried the claim of bias.
“SSANU is only playing to the gallery because of the age-old rivalry it sees itself with ASUU.The fact remains that in that same committee there is a retired bursar, there is a seasoned lawyer, there are those who have held positions before, who know what the system is and will come out with recommendations that will be useful for the survival of the university system,” he said
Concerning the removal of Babalakin, Ashiru said ASUU had written to the President specifically calling for his removal as he takes unilateral decisions without consultation with Council.
On the issue of the Senate convening a meeting without a substantive VC, Ashiru said there is a provision in the law that Senate could convene without a vice-chancellor.
“The rules and regulations of Senate which the law recognises provides that a Senate can convene itself by getting the signature of one-third of its members. That was what was done in UNILAG. More than 142 professors signed to convene that Senate in compliance with the regulations,” he said
