The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), University of Ibadan chapter, on Tuesday trained 389 newly employed academic staff, even as it urged the Federal Government to ensure timely replacement of retired or deceased lecturers across public universities.
Speaking during the orientation programme held in Ibadan, Chairperson of ASUU-UI, Dr Adefemi Afolabi, described the recent recruitment as a welcome development but insufficient to address the manpower deficit in Nigeria’s university system.
He explained that the training was designed to expose participants to the ethics, responsibilities, and expectations of academic staff, including teaching, research, and community service, as well as provisions of the university staff handbook.
Afolabi warned against professional misconduct, including examination malpractice and sexual harassment, stressing that the union would not shield erring members.
“Any member found culpable will face the union’s ethics committee, while the university authorities may also apply appropriate sanctions, including dismissal,” he said.
He also called on the Federal Government to fully implement all outstanding agreements with ASUU, covering both financial and non-financial commitments.
In his address, the ASUU Ibadan Zonal Coordinator, Professor Biodun Olaniran, described the orientation as an “ideological boot camp” aimed at reshaping the mindset of the new lecturers.
“You have crossed a significant threshold. Today, you are the newest members of the most formidable intellectual and activist force on the African continent,” he said. “You have not just joined a university; you have joined a struggle.”
Olaniran lamented the state of tertiary education in the country, declaring that “the university system in Nigeria is bleeding,” citing underfunding, proliferation of universities, casualisation of academic labour, and what he described as inadequate government attention to education.
He urged the new lecturers to see teaching as a sacred duty, research as a tool for societal liberation, and unionism as an integral part of their professional identity.
Also speaking, former ASUU Lagos Zonal Coordinator, Professor Adelaja Odutola Odukoya, described the union as a mass-based, people-oriented movement within the labour ecosystem.
According to him, ASUU operates as a “fighting machine” committed to defending the interests of the oppressed against exploitative structures.
In a separate lecture, Professor Dapo Adewole emphasised the importance of academic culture rooted in service, urging lecturers to embrace a philosophy of “living for others and not ourselves alone.”
Other speakers at the training included Professors Sola Olorunyomi, Ade Adejumo, Alex Akanmu, and Ademola Aremu, who delivered lectures on union structure, ethics, welfare, and responsibilities.
The event underscored ASUU’s continued push to strengthen academic standards and welfare advocacy amid ongoing challenges in Nigeria’s university system.
