The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has called on well-meaning Nigerians to caution the Federal Government to honour its agreement with the union to prevent continued industrial crisis in the nation’s tertiary education sector. The union’s President, Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Lagos.
The union’s National Executive Committee (NEC) after a meeting at the Federal University of Technical Akure (FUTA) in Ondo, on Nov. 4, 2018, declared a ‘total, comprehensive and indefinite’ nationwide strike. The strike, was however suspended on Feb. 7, after series of negotiations between the parties and other concerned stakeholders.
But Ogunyemi told NAN on Sunday that “Government has not kept faith with our MOA signed on February 7.
“What government ought to have done, they do not want to do any more. They have literally gone to sleep.
“For instance they had promised before the suspension of the strike, to set up visitation panel to our universities within two weeks and three months after government has not done anything in that regard.
“At least not to my knowledge that they had put any panel in place nor inaugurate any.
“By February 28 of this year, government had promised to pay the union, N25 billion part payment of outstanding arrears of the EARN academic allowances.
“Our renegotiation with Dr Wale Babalakin had promised to put us in a more cordial path with fair guidelines when we cone back to the renegotiation table but now, there seem to be no change of attitude on the side of government.”
He said that the union had a timeframe attached to every action, hence the current call for caution on the part of government. He disclosed that the government had communicated that funds had been approved, but he stated that approval of funds and implementation were diiferent, as the fund were yet to get to the union.
“Our members have begun to express doubts about government’s promise to fulfill its pledge faithfully.
“And when this pressure begins to mount there is nothing the leadership can do because leadership must hearken to the voice of followers.
“The point is that we are not keen about disrupting the academic calendar. What we are doing is to express our worries and carry the public along.
“So, Nigerians must come out now and speak to government concerning all these things raised to maintain the current precarious industrial stability on our campuses ” he said.
He said that though the Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu had assured the union that the payment would soon be done, but he expressed concern that time was of essence his members nationwide. (NAN)
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) on Wednesday urged that its members should not be held responsible if there is any disruption in the university system, considering how the Federal Government had not shown commitment to carrying out the 2019 Memorandum of Action.
The ASUU National President, Prof Biodun Ogunyemi, stated this at a briefing in Abuja, to give an update on the ongoing renegotiation with the government and to clear the air over the N25billion confirmed by the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, to have been approved for universities.
Ogunyemi said the N25billion was meant to be a part-payment of the Earned Academic Allowances and should have been released between February 15 and 28, 2019, as agreed. But this was not done.
He said, “Since information on the amounts mentioned in the media went round, the ASUU has been inundated with enquiries on the union’s perspective to the story.
“Funding for the revitalisation of public universities has for years been of very high priority to ASUU.
“Reaching an agreement with the Federal Government has often been a frustrating journey for our union. It is often marked with protests, strikes and requires a conscious and focused engagement. The 2001 agreement, which gave birth to the 2009 agreement, was not an exemption. The exception here is the personality leading the government negotiation team.
“The current leadership of the government team clearly lacks the academic disposition and humility needed to undertake such task.
“Our members enjoy their work and hate to see any disruption in the smooth running of our universities. However, the level of frustration occasioned by the lackadaisical attitude of the government towards meeting the terms of the 2019 Memorandum of Action that was freely signed with our union is increasingly becoming unbearable.
“We, therefore, call on all Nigerian patriots, parents and students including the Nigeria Labour Congress to prevail on the government to keep to the terms of our agreement. Otherwise, our union should not be held responsible for any disruption in the system.”
