During Saturday's protest, the residents said they were unhappy about the dismissal and called on Mr Sanwo-Olu to intervene and reinstate Mr Dansu and the other officers.
Some residents of Ikoga-Zebbe in Badagry Local Government Area of Lagos State have called on Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu to reinstate Anthony Dansu and four other lecturers of the Lagos State University (LASU) who were 'wrongfully' dismissed in 2019.
The dismissed lecturers were officials of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU). They are Isaac Akinloye Oyewumi (ASUU chairperson); Adebowale Adeyemi-Suenu (Vice Chairman); Anthony Dansu (Secretary); Adeolu Oluwaseyi Oyekan (Assistant Secretary); and Oluwakemi Adebisi Aboderin-Shonibare (Treasurer).
During Saturday's protest, the residents said they were unhappy about the dismissal and called on Mr Sanwo-Olu to intervene and reinstate Mr Dansu, an indigene of the town, and the other officers.
The residents carried placards with such inscriptions as: "Dear Governor Sanwo-Olu, please correct this injustice. #RestoreDrDansu", "Reinstate Dr Tony Dansu and others", "Let justice prevail; Dr Tony Dansu's integrity and service deserve commendation, not dismissal", "Dear Governor Sanwo-Olu, reinstate academic freedom", and "Dear people's governor, show Lagos is committed to fairness".
The dismissal
The lecturers were dismissed during the university governing council's 122nd meeting held on 12 September 2019.
They were accused of unauthorised removal, retention and dissemination or publication of official confidential documents and subsequently sacked.
In February 2022, the David Sunmoni-led governing council of the university reinstated the lecturers after an Appeal Committee headed by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Adenike Boyo, cleared the lecturers of all offences and recommended their reinstatement.
But in a strange move, 48 hours after the governing council approved its appeal committee's recommendation, the same governing council ruled to put the recall of the lecturers on hold.
The state government has yet to reinstate the lecturers more than two years later.
In a statement signed by Mayowa Adejobi, James Avoseh, Ademola Bokoh, Tinka Gabrie, Francis Avoseh, and Medemaku Noah, the protesters stated that the school's management fired Mr Dansu and others for exposing some illegal acts.
Before they were dismissed, Messrs Dansu, Oyekan, and Aboderin-Shonibare approached the court to challenge what they termed the university's persecution.
"This was based on the premise that they were about to be illegally dismissed in the same manner Drs Oyewumi and Adeyemi-Suenu were dismissed in 2017," the statement added.
Osatohanmwen Obaseki-Osaghae, a judge of the National Industrial Court, Lagos in suit No: NICN/LA/493/2018 on 11 July 2019, ruled that "under the Freedom of Information Act and other relevant laws cited, the university authorities have no such powers to proceed against officers of the union in these cases; that both parties are creations of law, and must therefore respect the law.
"Given that the issue was not due for judicial review since no damage had been done yet; even as the court was mindful of the breach of constitutional rights of the officers by the university authority, the two parties should go and follow the path of the law for the sake of peace, order and good administration in the university and its community."
The statement, however, said that LASU management proceeded with the trials and dismissed the officials.
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The residents called on Mr Sanwo-Olu to reinstate the affected officers.
They further requested that all accrued financial entitlements and benefits be paid to the affected lecturers, and promotions merited be given without loss of seniority and entitlements.
One of the protesters, Mide Abayomi, an indigene of the community and alumnus of LASU, implored Mr Sanwo-Olu to recall the lecturers to work so that the university community could grow.
"We want Governor Sanwo-Olu to reinstate the five lecturers to the university so that the current students of the institution could benefit from their expertise, which I and some others had benefited from in the past. LASU community misses them (the five affected lecturers)," he said.
Solomon Peter, another alumnus of LASU, urged Mr Sanwo-Olu not to delay justice in the cause but to act swiftly by considering the affected lecturers.
