Governor Ademola Adeleke has faulted the National Executive Council of the Academic Staff Union of Universities over its criticism of the tenure extension of the Vice-Chancellor of Osun State University, Prof. Clement Adebooye.
The state Commissioner for Information, Kolapo Alimi, in a statement, said the university is governed by law and not by the preferences of any union.
The government’s reaction followed a communiqué issued after ASUU’s NEC meeting in Abuja on Saturday, where it described the two-year extension as a breach of the Universities Miscellaneous Act and the 2025 FGN-ASUU Agreement, and accused the Visitor of acting without due process.
But the state government said ASUU, as a trade union, has no power to determine or substitute its judgment for the statutory responsibilities of the Visitor, Governing Council, or the Osun State House of Assembly.
“No staff union, including ASUU, has the statutory authority to teach the Visitor or the Governing Council how to exercise powers lawfully vested in them,” the statement said.
The government explained that the VC’s current tenure runs until January 2027 and no retroactive decision was taken.
It added that Governor Adeleke’s action as Visitor was within his constitutional powers and was backed by the Osun State House of Assembly, which amended the UNIOSUN Establishment Law to provide the legal framework for the extension.
“It is therefore inaccurate to portray the matter as though the Visitor acted in isolation. The Visitor cannot be said to have acted outside the law where the competent legislative authority has exercised its constitutional function to amend the enabling law,” the statement noted.
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