Seven years after five lecturers of Lagos State University (LASU) were dismissed, pressure is mounting on the Lagos State Government and the university to bring the protracted dispute to an end and reinstate the academics.
The lecturers, who were leaders of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) at the institution, were dismissed during the university’s 122nd Governing Council meeting on September 12, 2019.
They were accused of unauthorised removal and dissemination of confidential university documents.
The affected academics are Isaac Oyewumi, then ASUU-LASU Chairperson; Adebowale Adeyemi-Suenu, Vice-Chairperson; Anthony Dansu, secretary; Adeolu Oluwaseyi Oyekan, Assistant Secretary; and Oluwakemi Aboderin-Shonibare, Treasurer.
Known as the “LASU Five”, the lecturers have spent years seeking a reversal of the decision, while their case took a further turn in 2022 when the university’s Governing Council approved their reinstatement.
Seven years, one unresolved decision
In February 2022, the Governing Council, led by David Sunmoni, approved the recommendation of an Appeal Committee headed by the university’s then Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Adenike Boyo, which cleared the lecturers of the allegations and recommended that they be reinstated.
However, the decision did not translate into their return to the university.
Just 48 hours after approving the Appeal Committee’s recommendation, the same Governing Council placed the recall of the lecturers on hold.
The unresolved decision has since become the centre of renewed demands for intervention from the Lagos State Government.
Over the years, the affected academics and professional associations have staged demonstrations in Lagos to press for their reinstatement.
In 2025, the Concerned Sons and Daughters of Ikoga-Zebbe Kingdom in Badagry also appealed to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu to intervene.
The group called on the governor to “lift the embargo his government placed on the implementation of the decision of the LASU Governing Council on 23 February 2022.”
The organisation described Tony Dansu and the four other ASUU-LASU officials as having been “wrongfully and illegally dismissed” and asked that they be reinstated unconditionally.
‘Seven years is not the end of a story’
The recent push came from the lecturers themselves in a statement issued on Saturday, in which they described the prolonged wait as unjust and renewed their demand for unconditional reinstatement.
Speaking on behalf of the group, Dansu said the experience had not made them bitter or regretful.
He said they were still committed to fairness, truth and justice despite the difficulties that had accompanied the dispute.
“Some disappointed (in some cases, the least expected persons); others, sent by God, appeared and gave even more than desired support. Such is the mystery of the journey; where men withdraw, Providence sometimes speaks,” Dansu said.
He expressed confidence that the dispute would eventually end positively.
“Seven years is not the end of a story. Sometimes, it is merely the silence before the final chapter,” he said.
His statement reflects the lecturers’ continued expectation that the matter can still be resolved despite the passage of seven years.
What is at stake?
The case has extended beyond the fate of five academics. It has raised questions about the implementation of decisions reached through the university’s own internal review mechanisms.
The Appeal Committee constituted by the Governing Council cleared the lecturers and recommended their return. The council subsequently approved that recommendation, only for the recall to be suspended two days later.
That sequence has left the status of the lecturers unresolved and sustained calls for the authorities to settle the matter.
On the part of the affected academics, reinstatement would bring an end to a dispute that has consumed seven years of their professional lives. For the university on the other hand, resolving the case would also close one of its longest-running institutional controversies.
The lecturers are now looking to the Lagos State Government and the university authorities for a decision that will finally determine their fate.
Until then, the “LASU Five” continue to wait for the implementation of a reinstatement decision that was reached more than four years ago.
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