Strike: FG promises to address ASUU’s basic demand within 7days

 

 

 

Jonas Ezieke, Abuja

 

The Federal Government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities ASUU on Thursday reached an agreement on the dispute leading to a warning strike by the union over the non-payment of outstanding N22.127 billion earned allowance of university lecturers and the N30 billion fund for the revitalization of public universities.

 

The truce meeting brokered by the Speaker House of Representatives Hon.Femi Gbajabiamila yielded positive results as both the federal government delegation and the leaders of the union agreed to shift positions on the issues leading to the warning strike by the union

 

Speaker Gbajabiamila had following a resolution by the House on Tuesday November 16,2021 at plenary wherein the lawmakers resolved to intervene and halt the strike by university lecturers had invited the parties to a tripartite meeting.

 

In a motion on the impending industrial dispute, a member of the House Hon Prof.Julius Ihonvbere had drawn the attention of the green chamber of National Assembly to the impending strike calling for an amicable solution.

 

Ihonvebere noted that the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) in Nigeria is threatening to proceed on another industrial action on a matter that had been on the front burner for so long.

 

He had pointed at the implementation of signed agreements entered into between ASUU and the federal government as the main reason for the impending strike

 

At the truce meeting by the House, both the Minister of State for Education Chief Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba and Minister of Finance Budget and National Planning Dr.Zainab Ahmed on behalf of federal government agreed to immediate release of the outstanding N22.127 billion earned allowance for university lecturers and contentious outstanding N30 billion fund for the revitalization of public universities.

The junior Education Minister’s intervention said that that the Ministry gave a schedule of what the universities should get and the Finance Ministry has been paying the universities since November elicited positive responses to the tripartite meeting by the lecturers.

 

He said that the Finance Ministry had been given a letter but does not have the guidance on payment. He said that by next Monday the minister in charge of finance ‘ll start paying adding that there is no reason for ASUU to be on strike.

 

Also the Minister of Finance in her intervention said that that November 8, 2021 N20 billion out of the N30 billion revitalization fund has been released by the  federal government to the public universities and the N10 billion balance is going to be paid in less than a week.

 

ASUU President Prof. Victor Emmanuel said that the issue in dispute started in 2009 when the union and the federal government signed an agreement of N1.3 trillion for the revitalization of the 24 public universities in the country.

 

He further said that the real issue is the sharing formula as the money is earned based on productivity of lecturers.

 

He informed the House  that only a paltry N20 billion was released leaving over N170 billion of the entire money to be released in tranches in the coffers of the government.

 

On the report by the lecturers union that some lecturers are being owed up to seventeen months of arrears of salary, she said that she is not aware and assured that as soon as she gets information on the issued they ‘ll pay.

 

Speaker Gbajabiamila who presided over the tripartite meeting said he was called by the House to find a short and long term solution to the incessant strike by university lecturers in Nigeria

 

He further said that the position taken by the government to immediately release the outstanding fund from the agreement is an amicable way of resolving the dispute by both parties.

 

He however said that there is no basis for the federal government to renege in implementing an agreement duly signed with the university lectures even though the amount of money involved which is N170 billion out of N1.3 trillion is huge.

 

He assured parties of the intervention of the relevant Committees of the National Assembly on Education to resolve the dispute by ensuring adequate budgetary appropriation to the public university system in Nigeria.