‘Security implications’: Yobe DSS director asks ASUU to call off strike

Yunusa AbdulKadir, director of the Department of State Services (DSS) in Yobe state, has asked the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to call off its ongoing strike.

ASUU has been on strike since February 14 over its call for the federal government to look into university funding, among other issues.

Students have also taken to the streets at different times to protest the lingering strike, including blocking major routes such as the Lagos-Ibadan expressway and the road leading to the airport in Lagos.

The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) had also planned to protest on the Abuja-Kaduna highway but the decision was suspended.

Following the delay in resolving the issues, the federal government had sued ASUU, and on Wednesday, the national industrial court had ordered the union to call off the strike.

However, ASUU has said it will file an appeal, while no decision has been taken by the union on calling off the strike.

Speaking at the third quarterly conference of the state directors of security in the north-east zone, AbdulKadir said the strike poses grave security implications for the country.

“In as much as we know that ASUU is pursuing a genuine cause, they should take a deeper look at the peculiarities of north-east region that has stayed for over a decade in the hands of insurgents,” NAN quoted Yunusa as saying.

In his remarks, Hassan Abdullahi, DSS director for Bauchi state, said the conference was organised to discuss security threats and craft solutions to the issues.