The Abia State College of Education, Technical, Arochukwu, ASCETA’s chairman, Comrade Egesi Onyemaechi Kevin, was fired by the college provost, Dr. Philips Nto, but the national leadership of the College of Education Academic Staff Union, COEASU, has protested.
In response to the provost’s alleged victimization, the union asked the state’s governor, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu, to promptly summon him to order.
The union stated that it would not permit Kevin to be fired in the guise of institutional reorganization in a statement released in Abuja by the General Secretary, Dr. Ahmed Bazza Lawan.
It claimed that the provost lacked the constitutional authority to dismiss the lecturer unilaterally and threatened further action as a national body if the demand was not met right away.
“We call on the Executive Governor of Abia State, His Excellency, Dr. Okezie Victor Ikpeazu, to urgently call the Provost of ASCETA, Arochukwu to order and stop the reign of terror, vendetta and victimization being perpetuated under the guise of reorganization in the College.
“In this season of Christmas, when love is in the air as people are exchanging gifts and forgiving each other, the only thing the Provost could offer is to terminate the appointment of the innocent union chairman, who is the bread winner of his family, in flagrant disregard for statutes and every sense of decorum.
“Even the letter conveying the purported sack betrays the reckless impunity and malicious intent of the Provost as it was issued on 19th December and made effective the next day.”
The union said that the provost lacked the qualifications needed to hold the position and that he also ignored counsel and assistance from individuals who could have helped him run the college successfully.
“The only offence of our comrade chairman is that he has been at the vanguard of representing the collective yearning of the academic staff union within the College for good governance and fair treatment.
“The Provost’s decision to sack him is out of personal vendetta against the union chairman’s consistent and lawful call for the right thing to be done in the College.
“We have seen through the antics of the Provost to provoke public interest at the expense of accuracy by using the media to project the Union Chairman as being redundant.
“The question is, does the Provost have the power to approbate and reprobate concurrently on such an establishment matter relying on the unilateral processes of his own volition without recourse to the Governing Council, any government white paper and/or the conditions of service applicable to Colleges of Education in Nigeria?
“We call on all well-meaning people not to fall for the cheap blackmail!
“In the interest of lawful order and industrial peace, our Union is calling on the Abia State government to call the Provost to order and ask him to rescind the decision. It is our hope that this call would be heeded immediately as we shall not hesitate to press further with appropriate action as a national body.”