ASUU Strike: Students ignored strike call-off…deserts campus
Students in tertiary institutions in Calabar, the Cross River state capital, have refused to return to lecture rooms even as the Academic Staff Union of the University (ASUU) called off the one week warning strike embarked upon by the Union. Our correspondent who visited some Institutions on Wednesday observed that the students who left the campus last week had refused to return.
Unconfirmed source hinted that students will start coming back weekend to resume classes on Monday. However, the few students that were found in some campuses told our correspondent that they came back to work on their assignment and term papers. “I am only here to complete my assignment, not for lectures” a student who declined, said.
Another student who gave his name as Classic said lecture will start fully next week by then other students who travelled outside the city may have come back. “That was the danger of strike. The effect cannot be quantify, the students are not animals, but we are human, when we leave the campus, to come back is a problem”
Classic further said “When you leave a particular environment at times, especially during this harsh economic environment, like in the school and go to your parent’s house and enjoy the comfort of the home, to come back is always a problem but I am sure our guys will come back on Saturday and Sunday to resume on Monday”.
“Look, what we experience today was not what we anticipated, who is happy? Nobody, who will want to come back, but we have no choice. The country is hard and tuff, we are not happy but have no alternative for now, this was not what we expected” Classic lamented.
It would be recalled that students in tertiary institutions left the campus last week based on a one week warning strike embarked upon by the Academic Staff Union of the Universities. The warning strike was called off but students in the University of Calabar have refused to return to class rooms.
When this newspaper contacted the authority of the Institution, nobody was willing to give any answer neither comment on the situation or offered their names and the Chairman of ASUU Unical chapter, Dr. Tony Eyang was also not in the office when we visited, at least to hear from him.
