COVID-19: Lecturers Can’t Ensure Social Distancing In Crowded Classes -ASUU

The National President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi on Tuesday said the union cannot guarantee social distancing in crowded classes and congested hostels in a bid to tame the spike in coronavirus (COVID-19) infections across the states.

Ogunyemi, however, said the safety of university lecturers and students is a priority, but the union is also worried that university professors are dying of COVID-19 infections.

Ogunyemi who disclosed this in a television programme in Abuja said  “We have not seen government and university authorities taking concrete steps to access the level of safety for our members and for our students.

“In as much as we are ready to go back, we are ready to put in extra efforts but it appears that government is not doing enough to address the two emergencies that we have – the emergency in the health sector as well as the emergency in the educational sector.

“Take for instance, how can we ensure or assure social distancing in crowded classes and congested hostels? Our hostels, are they fumigated? The classrooms, what flexible arrangements should be in place? I’m not sure universities can cope.”

Recall that ASUU, on December 24, 2020, conditionally suspended the nine-month-long strike by the lecturers after a lot of foot-dragging by the union and the Federal Government.

The Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 subsequently ordered schools to remain closed till January 18, 2021, to contain the spike in COVID-19 infections in the country.

The National Universities Commission (NUC) later asked universities to delay resumption till January 18, 2021, but the PTF on Monday said the January 18 date is subject to review.

Speaking on the programme, the ASUU president said the NUC and the government were yet to enforce all COVID-19 guidelines in the universities.

He also said the government should visit universities in the country and ensure all Covid-19 protocols were in place just as it did before the reopening of the aviation sector.

Ogunyemi further said lecturers are working on an alternative mode of learning, noting that some lecturers will blend virtual and physical classes to avoid overcrowding and maintain social distancing at universities.

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“But the universities don’t have functional ICT (Information Communications Technology) infrastructure and you need some huge funds to do this,” he stated.

“People are saying start virtual classes but we know that more than 60 per cent of our students will run into problems because they cannot afford data on their own and the wifi you are expected to see on campuses are not there.

"We have this limited capacity where the government should come in and ensure that the university environment is conducive for alternative models of teaching and learning,” Ogunyemi added.