President Bola Tinubu has appointed the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Bishop Matthew Kukah, as the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council of the Federal University of Applied Sciences, Kachia, Kaduna State.

This was disclosed in a statement signed by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.

He said the President also appointed principal officers for the university, including Prof. Qurix Williams Barnabas as Vice Chancellor, Sanusi Gambo Adamu as Registrar, Ibrahim Dalhat as bursar, and Prof. Daniel Abubakar as university Librarian.

President Tinubu also approved the appointment of Mr Thomas Etuh, representing the North Central, Chief Fabian Nwaora (South East), Prof Femi Taiwo (South West) and Zarah Bukar (North East) as members of the university’s Governing Council.

The statement noted that all the appointees were carefully selected based on their distinguished careers, leadership experience, and dedication to advancing education in Nigeria.

It added that Tinubu implored them to use their collective expertise to position the university as a hub for academic excellence and research, aligning with the administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

President Tinubu urged the newly appointed officers to provide visionary leadership and lay a solid foundation for the university’s growth as it prepares to admit its first cohort of students in September 2025.

The Federal University of Applied Sciences was formerly known as Nok University. It was renamed following the federal government’s takeover of its assets.

The Federal Government has called on Nigerian universities to set up Sexual Assault Referral Centres (SARCs) to address cases of sexual harassment and ensure timely intervention.

The Minister of Women Affairs, Imaan Suleiman-Ibrahim, made the call at a national summit on sexual harassment in Nigerian tertiary education held in Abuja on Monday, November 25, 2024.

Suleiman-Ibrahim described sexual harassment as a global menace and a pervasive violation of human rights, particularly against women and girls.

The minister stated that the effects of sexual harassment transcend physical harm, leaving survivors with emotional, psychological, and socio-economic scars.

Suleiman-Ibrahim highlighted the present administration’s commitment to zero-tolerance against gender-based violence through several initiatives, including supporting the Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) Act 2015 and the Sexual Harassment Prohibition Bill passed by the 9th Senate in July 2020.

Suleiman-Ibrahim pledged her commitment to championing gender equality principles and addressing gender-based violence, including sexual harassment eradication, in all its forms.

She also emphasised the need for universities to prioritise the safety and well-being of their students by enforcing policies, establishing gender-sensitive frameworks, and creating safe reporting channels

Two striking university unions in Nigeria have asked the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, to pay their four months’ withheld salaries, following an approval of the payment by President Bola Tinubu.

The striking unions ruled out the possibility of any meeting or negotiation with the Federal Government, insisting that the Ministry of Finance “do the needful” and remit their withheld salaries electronically to all their members.

“The President has given the approval, the Ministry of Education has conveyed the approval. It is within the precinct of the Ministry of Finance. So, the Minister of Finance should just do the needful. That’s all,” SSANU President, Muhammed Ibrahim said on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief programme on Tuesday.

On Monday, members of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU) commenced an indefinite nationwide strike within campuses of public universities to demand the immediate release of their four months’ withheld salaries.

The two unions said it was appalling that despite several ultimatums issued to the government, no positive result has come from the government.

The two unions directed their members in all public universities and inter-university centres throughout the country to “hold a joint congress in their respective campuses on Monday, October 28, 2024, and proceed on an indefinite, comprehensive and total strike action as no concession should be given in any guise”.

Our correspondents observed that public universities across the nation were shut down and nothing moved administratively within public varsities in Nigeria as hostels and varsity gates were locked up and electricity supply was cut off by disgruntled non-academic staff.

The SSANU President said the government reached out to the striking unions on Monday but the meeting was nothing to look forward to based on antecedents of failed negotiations.

He said, “Well, in terms of reaching out, yes, informally, we have been reached out to but we are not too excited about it because we have had it severally but we hope that this time it will be different.

“There is a very short and fast way to solve this problem. Every process and procedure has been followed. What is remaining is for the payment to be made. The government should just direct that these payments should be released, with the touch of a button, because everything is electronic now.

“Once the payments are made, we will resume back to work. Nobody is happy. Prolonged renegotiation won’t achieve any result. What we want is action.”

Before now, the two unions had staged several protests and warning strikes to protest their withheld salaries by the Federal Government.

Virtually all schools were closed across Nigeria between March and July 2020. Most schools only fully reopened in January 2021, with social distancing measures in place.

The two unions berated the Federal Government for paying withheld salaries to the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) while neglecting the non-academic unions.

All the unions had embarked on an eight-month strike in 2022 to press home some of their demands including a better welfare package. The administration of then President Muhammadu Buhari subsequently invoked a ‘No Work, No Pay policy’ against the unions but President Bola Tinubu last October approved the release of withheld salaries to ASUU members.

SSANU and NASU accused the Federal Government of unfair treatment and discrimination by failing to pay them the full eight months’ salaries like their academic counterparts.

Then Education Minister Tahir Mamman had in April blamed a “communication problem” for the non-payment of the full amount to SSANU and NASU members, whilst he insisted that they were not discriminated against.

CTV