Chibuike Nwabuko, Abuja
The authorities of the University of Maiduguri in Borno State has announced the postponement of all examinations that were originally scheduled to take place on Monday, January 16,, following the bomb blast that occurred in the University on the early hours of Monday.
This is even as the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has called off a press conference it had planned to hold, after the meeting of its National Executive Council (NEC) in Kano State.
It would be recalled that the bomb blast at the mosque of the University during the fajir prayer at about 6.30 a.m. claimed the lives of a professor and three others.
The Director, Senate and Academic Matters of the university, Filibus Yamta Mshelia, in a statement on Monday, urged the students to remain calm and vigilant.
He said that the examinations are expected to resume on Tuesday, January 17.
“The University management has directed that all examinations scheduled to hold on Monday, 16th January, 2017, have been postponed to a later date.
“Examinations will resume as scheduled on Tuesday 17th January 2017,” the statement said.
The action of the University authorities to reschedule the planned examinations came, after the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) had suspended a press conference it had planned to hold, after a meeting of its National Executive Council (NEC) in Kano State.
The Union expressed shock over the incident, which claimed four lives, including a professor and three others at the mosque of the University during the fajir prayer at about 6.30 a.m.
It was gathered that 13 others were rushed to the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital.
ASUU National President, Prof. Abiodun Ogunyemi, announced the suspension of the news conference.
The national executive members of the Association had been in Kano for the past four days to discuss issues about Nigerian universities.
The President was expected to address a conference on the outcome of the meeting of the national executive council when he received the news of the unfortunate incident in Maiduguri.
Ogunyemi told newsmen on Monday that following the bomb blast, the executive council of the Union had no option but to suspend the conference until it gets the details of what happened.
“We don’t have the state of mind to do what we want to do today.“We are offset with unfortunate development in Maiduguri.
“We learnt that four people including a professor lost their lives while six others sustained injuries,”Ogunyemi said.
