The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has
pulled out from the scheduled meeting with the federal government to resolve
the ongoing strike that has paralysed academic activities in the nation's
tertiary institutions, until a response for its counter offers.
The Deputy Director (Press) of the Ministry of
Labour and Employment, Mr. Samuel Olowookere, had late last Monday announced
that there would be a meeting with ASUU and relevant stakeholders to be
coordinated by the Minister of Labour
and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige.
Others who were expected at the meeting were the
Ministers of Education and Finance, Mallam Adamu Adamu and Mrs. Kemi Adeosun;
the Chairman, National Income Salaries and Wages Commission, Executive
Secretary, National Universities Commission (NUC) and the President of the
Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), Ayuba Wabba.
But the ASUU President, Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi, in a
statement, said the union would suspend further meetings with the federal government
until it receives a reply to their proposal detailing their new offer on the
way out of the protracted industrial action.
Ogunyemi said that last Thursday, ASUU leadership met
with officials of the Ministries of Education and Labour and Employment where
it was agreed that the union should consult and "revert to government."
He said following due consultations, the union had
collated the views of their members on the offers from government in dispute in
the letter of August 16, 2017.
According to him, these views were submitted to the
federal government vide their letter dated August 28, 2017.
According to him, "Members of ASUU were forced
to proceed on indefinite, comprehensive and total strike on August 13, 2017,
following government failure to implement issues on which understanding was
reached during the suspended warning strike of November 2016.
"We have since held talks with representatives
of government and consulted our members nationwide on steps to be taken to
immediately resolve the lingering crisis. Among issues in the dispute are
registration of Nigerian Universities Pension Management Company (NUPEMCO),
fractionalisation of salaries in federal universities and gross under funding/non
funding of state universities and arrears and implementation of Earned Academic
Allowance.
“Other issues are the release of fund for revitalisation
of public universities as spelt out in the 2013 Memorandum of Understanding
(MoU), guidelines for retirement benefits of professors in line with 2009
FGN/ASUU agreement, Treasury Single Account (TSA) and the withdrawal of support
for universities staff primary schools.
"As we await the federal government action in
our letter, we hope that it would not be long before we receive a positive
response which will bring an end to the dispute. Meanwhile, we thank all
Nigerians, particularly our students (and their parents) and the media, for
their understanding so far in the need to speedily address the issues in the
best interest of the Nigerian university system and for the overall development
of the country."
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