17th July, 2014
Damilare Okunola
P.M.NEWS Campus Square checks have revealed that students of the Yaba College of Technology, YABATECH, Yaba, Lagos are yet to fully commence lectures after the protracted Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics, ASUP strike was provisionally suspended last week.
The union had suspended its nine-month old strike last week Saturday and asked lecturers to commence lectures on Tuesday, 15 July, after the newly appointed Minister of Education, Ibrahim Shekarau, waded into the issue.
But our correspondent, who was at the institution’s Yaba campus this week, discovered that many of the students were roaming about, stating that they could not stay at home again since the industrial action had been called off and lecturers were told to commence lecture immediately.
Those who spoke with P.M.NEWS Campus Square explained that they had stayed at home for too long and were simply excited to return to school after such a lengthy period at home.
Rufus Isaac, a ‘fresher’ at the department of Mass Communication, said that “I came around because I learnt that we had resumed since the strike action had been suspended since last week and that lecturers were asked to try to make up for the lost time.
“Unfortunately, nothing is happening just yet as you can see for yourself but we’re hopeful that before the week runs out or on Monday at most, lectures will commence fully and everybody will settle down to work again”.
Speaking in the same vein was an Engineering student of the institution, who simply identified himself as Wale.
“Our lecturers are unpredictable because they could just come up with something funny which many students have observed, hence our presence in school today,” the lanky student told our correspondent.
He however added that, “the time table is not out yet so, there’s no doubt that we’re yet to fully resume. The best bet for lectures to start is next week but the time-table should be out before this week runs out”.
A cross section of Muslim students who spoke together, also confided in P.M.NEWS Campus Square that they would have preferred that the resumption date be shifted forward a bit, to allow them finish with the Ramadan fasting which is ongoing.
According to them, “now, everything will be done hastily as lecturers will be trying to ensure that they cover lost grounds within the shortest possible time.
We do not have any choice as it stands now but it would have been better for us had the resumption date been moved forward a bit to allow us finish with the fasting”.