The governor of Abia State, Alex Otti, has apologised for the recent strike in the Abia State University (ABSU) chapter of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
The governor explained that the strike occurred despite his approval of the union’s demands. He said the failure to implement the decisions was due to bureaucratic delays.
Naija News reports that Otti spoke on Thursday during a Public Lecture, organised as part of the activities to mark the 35th anniversary of the creation of the state, held at the International Conference Centre, Umuahia.
He described the action as avoidable, explaining that the requests presented by ASUU were legitimate and had been carefully considered before he approved them.
According to him, the financial implications of the demands were already captured in the memo presented to him, making further delays in implementation unnecessary.
Otti expressed concern that bureaucratic processes could frustrate government decisions even after the necessary approvals had been obtained.
“I want to, on this podium, apologise to Abia State University as well. That strike was avoidable.
“The reality is that the work stops here. So, we failed. I failed. I failed them,” he said.
The governor said that the incident had reinforced the need for greater efficiency and accountability among government officials responsible for implementing approved policies.
He said that it was unacceptable for workers’ welfare issues to remain unresolved after the government had approved the necessary measures.
