ASUU Hints On Calling Of Strike Soon Says It Has Completed Negotiation With FG

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) On Monday disclosed that it has completed negotiation with the Federal Government on the strike hoping that issues that led to the over three-month strike may soon be resolved.

ASUU President Emmanuel Osodeke who made this known assured that the strike can end tomorrow adding that the academic body is done with the negotiations and now waiting for the government to call them back for the signing of the renegotiated agreement.”

According to Osodeke, all the issues that led to the strike however remain unresolved since a pact has yet to be signed by the parties to the dispute.

Osedeke blamed the lingering strike on lack of will by the government to do the needful while explaining that ASUU embarked on the strike after exhausting all avenues available to amicably resolve the issues with the government.

He said: “If the government had been willing to resolve the issues affecting Nigerians, then there would be no need to go on strike. The problem is the will of the government to resolve issues.

“All the issues that made us go on strike are still there; that is the revitalisation fund that is putting more money into universities and revitalising the infrastructure in the universities. “There is also the issue of our mode of payments in the universities.

Furthermore, he said, “there is no university in the world where lecturers are paid salaries from the Accountant General’s Office.”

“We have challenged them to provide one, if universities are a universal body, why are they doing things differently? “We talk of negotiation of the agreement, the proliferation of universities, among others, so there are lots of issues that they have not resolved.

“What we are doing is for the benefit of Nigerians.  We want a situation where there will not be a disparity between the children of the rich and the poor in knowledge acquisition in this country.”

Truthlive.net reported that the academic body commence a warning strike on February 14 which was later extended by two months.

Three other university-based unions including; the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU), Non-Academic Staff Union of Allied Educational Institutions (NASU) and National Association of Academic Technologists (NAAT)  later joined the strike.

There have been pleas and protest from all quarters for the government to meet the union’s demand and end the strike which has lasted months.

Recall that earlier, President Muhammadu Buhari had directed his Chief of Staff, Prof. Ibrahim to head a special committee comprising the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Labour and Productivity. the National Salaries and Wages Income Commission, the National University Commission, National Universities Commission (NUC)  and the striking unions to resolve the issue concerning the strike.