Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ilorin, Prof. Sulyman Abdulkareem, said on Tuesday that the Federal Government could secure a loan to offset the demands of Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
He told newsmen in Ilorin that incessant strikes by the union had deleterious effects on varsity students.
He was speaking against the backdrop of the declaration of a month-long warning strike by ASUU on Monday to press home its demands from government.
According to him, there is nothing wrong if the government secures a loan to offset all the ASUU’s demands and to make the university system better.
The vice-chancellor observed that while the Federal Government had been overstretched due to paucity of funds, ASUU could employ lobbyists to lobby government on its behalf.
Abdulkareem commented on his legacy as the 10th vice-chancellor of the university and said he had been able to reawaken researchers in the most sought -after university in Nigeria to realise their essence in the institution.
He observed that the university’s ranking had improved and that its employees were winning more Tertiary Education Trust Fund scholarships.
“The University will soon be at the forefront among universities that are producing minds that are changing the world for the better,’’ Abdulkareem said.