The Abuja Court of Appeal has ordered members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to return to work immediately.
The order came after the court denied the union’s request for a stay of execution on a previous National Industrial Court ruling ordering the university lecturers to resume work.
The three-member Court of Appeal bench led by Hamma Barka granted the union permission to case the industrial court verdict, but stated that it must first start work before filing the appeal.
It stated that if ASUU fails to re-open the universities, the authorization it granted the union to appeal the National Industrial Court’s interlocutory order “would be automatically annulled.”
It gave the university lecturers’ union seven days to file an appeal against the National Industrial Court’s decision.
“I am inclined to grant the application to appeal the National Industrial Court of Nigeria’s ruling.” “However, the order of the lower court shall be immediately obeyed,” the court ruled unanimously.
On September 21, the National Industrial Court ordered ASUU to end its strike.
The court granted the federal government’s motion on notice, directing the lecturers to return to classrooms.
In his decision on the interlocutory injunction, trial judge Polycarp Hamman stopped ASUU from continuing with the strike until the federal government’s suit against ASUU was resolved.
Dissatisfied with the verdict, the union went to the appeals court to file an appeal.
It also sought a stay of execution of the industrial court’s decision.