The president of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Professor Biodun Ogunyemi while officially announcing the suspension of the strike yesterday, disclosed the various agreements reached with the Federal Government that led to the suspension of the over three (3) months strike action.
This was contained in a Memorandum of Action (MoA) signed by ASUU and the Federal Government on Thursday. Highlights of the Memorandum of Action include the following;
- In addition to the N20 billion for 2018, the sum of N25 billion only would be released in April/May 2019, after which government would resume full implementation of the MoU of 2013.
- Part-payment of the outstanding arrears of the earned academic allowances; defraying the balance up to 2018 in 4 tranches within 36 months; and mainstreaming further payments of EAA into the annual budgets beginning from 2019 budget.
- PICA verification and the release of the arrears of salary shortfall at the Federal University of Agriculture, Makurdi, not later than 15th February 2019.
- Strengthening the Consultative Committee on State-owned Universities (CCSOU), inaugurated on Monday, 28th January, 2019 to look into the issues of proliferation, underfunding and governance to consistently deliver on its mandate.
- Payment of the outstanding EAA arrears of all eligible staff in the University of Ilorin, especially the loyal ASUU members whose appointments were illegally terminated by today, 7th February, 2019.
- Acknowledgment and appreciation of Government for facilitating the release of the final letter of approval for the granting of an operational license to NUPEMCO.
- Visitation to all Federal Universities would commence tentatively by 11th March 2019.
- Provision of documented guidelines on procedures and roles of parties in the process of renegotiating FGN-ASUU Agreement of 2009 which would commence not later than 18th February 2019 and end by Friday 29th March 2019.
The ASUU president further stated that should Government fail to fulfill its part of the agreement as reflected in this 2019 Memorandum of Action, ASUU shall resume its suspended strike action as the Union deems necessary.
The University of Ibadan has announced the resumption date for academic activities following the suspension of a three-month-old strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
The university management in a statement signed by the Vice Chancellor, Idowu Olayinka announced February 14, as resumption date for its students.
However, academic activities will resume officially on Feb. 18th.
The statement reads: “Following the suspension of the strike action embarked upon by the ASUU, we wish to advise our students to plan to return to the university as from Thursday, 14th February 2019.
“This would enable those whose voting centres are located within the university to exercise their civic responsibilities on election days.
“On the issue of resumption day for academic activities as directed by the ASUU President, the University of Ibadan management have scheduled to re-commence on Monday, February 18, 2019.
“A revised Academic Calendar for the rest of the 2017/2018 session is being drawn up and will be circulated shortly.
“We wish all those that will be traveling from far and near to Ibadan safe trips.”
President Muhammadu Buhari today received the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) led by President Comrade Danielson Bamidele Akpan and other Members of the Executive Committee of the Association at the State House, Abuja.
Reports reaching us has it that a sum of One hundred and fifty million naira (N150,000,000) was doled out to the leadership of NANS during this visit as it is believed that their job is to hold protests against ASUU and other striking units instead of holding the govt accountable.
Anyway, if you are still wondering why the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has been quiet all these while, the NANS president promised President Buhari 20million vote from Nigerian students. He was quoted to have said ASUU is being hypocritical and that Buhari is a wonderful Man!
#NANS President Promised #Buhari 20million Votes From Nigerian Students. Isn't it ironic that the same students who have been at home for about two months because of #ASUUStrike are these same ones doing this? #ColossusGists #ASUU #NigeriaEducation pic.twitter.com/kbi04WLEiX— ColossusGists (@ColossusGists) January 4, 2019
Students are on strike and NANS president is promising buhari 20 million votes. Graduates, working class, youth corpers, fathers, mothers are shouting #EndAsuuStrike, FG & ASUU are always walking out of each other, with no solutions yet, only for National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) members, to go and be praising Buhari & insulting ASUU.
The President of NANS says ASUU is being economical with the truth, indirectly meaning that they have taken a side.
photos of the meeting....
photos of the meeting....
See Some Nigerians Reactions as expected ....
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) says it may not honour further calls by the federal government for a meeting on the way forward over the current strike by its members.
The union’s National President, Biodun Ogunyemi, said this on the sideline of a news conference on the update of the union’s struggle to salvage the country’s public universities from deterioration on Sunday in Lagos.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the union had on November 4 embarked on what it described as a ‘total, comprehensive and indefinite strike’.
Members of the union are protesting the non-implementation of agreements entered into with the federal government in 2009 and 2017, as well as funding and improved welfare for members, among other issues.
According to Mr Ogunyemi, to ensure that the agreements were implemented, the union had held a series of consultative meetings with the government and written series of letters with little or nothing to the effect.
He noted that it was against this backdrop that union resumed strike on November 4.
“Since the commencement of this strike, we have had six meetings with agents of the federal government, with no clear commitment from government to resolving the issues we presented.
“Government appears to have adopted ‘keep them talking’ strategy while deceiving the public that progress was being made and that partial agreements had been reached between union and government.
“We want to say that government has continually and falsely raised the hopes of the Nigerian public on the state of discussion with our union and we may not be interested in holding further dialogue with them until we see signs of commitment and sincerity in addressing the issues before them.
“Our expectation from a very responsive and sincere position is that by now, all outstanding issues would have been resolved to the satisfaction of both parties.
“Unfortunately, the government is yet to show commitment and sincerity in addressing these problems,” he said.
According to the don, on the renegotiation of Federal Government/ASUU agreement, there are still unresolved issues about the leadership of the government team.
“We have strong reasons to believe that the continuation of Dr Wale Babalakin as the head of the renegotiation with ASUU will not yield good fruit,” he said.
Mr Ogunyemi said his union had taken up its current project as a lifetime, adding that this was why dating back to the 1980s, the union had remained consistent on what was of concern to it.
“If we miss education, we miss development as we will end up being enslaved the second time.
“What is happening in this country now is that people are privatizing everything, including education and before we know it, what happened to our primary and secondary education will happen.
“And these are some of the things we are supposed to be tracking and engage in this society if we want to make the change that we need.
“Our conviction is the reason behind the prolonged strike and our members have the conviction that until we get education right, Nigeria will never get it right.
“Insurgency will increase, banditry, poverty, kidnapping, misery and other societal ills will continue.
“Let me also state clearly too that our strike has nothing to do with politics or election, as is being speculated in some sectors of the society.
“We have never thought of aborting any election. We do not want to create a problem for this country but let the government do the right thing,” he said.
Mr Ogunyemi said that the situation might have to rise to the point where Nigerians would have to tell the government what to do with the country’s education system.
He said the union appreciated the understanding of the Nigerian students, their parents, among whom were many ASUU members and other people of goodwill since the resumption of the avoidable strike.
“ASUU does not take your sacrifice for granted. With your continued support and sacrifice, we can make the Nigerian ruling class come to accept the centrality of university education in improving the human condition.
“Qualitative and public-funded education is not an option; it is inevitable if Nigeria ever wishes to banish poverty, ignorance, squalor, insecurity, disease and corruption.
NAN
Nine months after the non-academic staff unions of universities suspended their nationwide strike, the unions said they are embarking on three days national protest.
The academic staff, ASUU, have been on a nationwide strike since November 4.
The non-academic unions comprising the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, (SSANU), Non-Academic Staff Union of Universities (NASU), and the National Association of Academic Technologists, (NAAT) said the protest is about the non-implementation of the agreement reached with the federal government that led to the suspension of their earlier industrial action in March.
The protest will begin on December 17 and ends December 19.
A spokesperson for the joint union, Abdussobur Salaam, disclosed this in a statement sent to COLOSSUS GISTS Monday evening.
He said the protest was a decision made at the union’s 35th National Executive Council (NEC) meeting held at the Enugu State University (ESUT) on December 5 and 6.
”In view of the above, the National Executive Council of the Union resolved that branches organize a three-day national protest across the Country between Monday 17th and Wednesday 19th December 2018,” Mr. Salaam said.
COLOSSUS GISTS reported how the unions embarked on a nationwide strike on December 4, 2017, and suspended it in March 2017.
The Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, had said then that the government will source for eight billion naira within five weeks to pay the striking workers.
The minister announced this at a resolution reached at a conciliation meeting on March 13, 2018.
But Mr Salaam said the delay in the payment of Earned Allowances had become a source of discomfort and agitation by members of the three unions, while it had also become a source of embarrassment for the leadership.
”The Federal Government through the Federal Ministry of Education had informed the Chairman of the Joint Action Committee of NAAT, NASU and SSANU via a letter dated 9th August 2018, that approval had been given for the release of Eight Billion Naira being payment of Earned Allowances for Non- Teaching Staff in the Universities and requested for templates for the payments to the unions,” Mr Salaam said .
He said it appears the letters being sent to the unions are a delay ploy by the Federal Ministry of Education
”as the letters in themselves are needless, because the unions had always made their positions known since the irregular disbursement of N23 billion to ASUU in 2017”.
He said the status of the workers in the university staff schools remained the same despite the National Industrial Court ruling of December 5, 2016, which had ruled that the workers in the university staff schools are employees of the federal government.
”The members of staff domiciled in the University Staff Schools, numbering over two thousand, have been subjected to trauma, insecurity and denials of salaries, some going to upward of a year, a situation that the union cannot continue to accept,” he said.
Mr Salaam said it is unfortunate that the federal government has continued to show apathy and disinterest in all other aspects of the Memoranda of Understanding reached between it and the union.
”Members should be fully mobilized to participate in the protests, while branches are advised to carry along the media and the security agencies accordingly,” he said.
When contacted, the spokesperson of the ministry of labour and employment, Samuel Olowookere, said he would get back to this reporter.
He was yet to do so at the time of this report.
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has given conditions upon which the current industrial action will be suspended.
The president of the union, Abiodun Ogunyemi, stated the conditions in an interview on Sunday night with COLOSSUS GISTS.
Mr Ogunyemi said it was unfortunate that Nigerian leaders
“like to move in circles without resolving the challenges rocking the system”.
“Some of these conditions, ASUU said, include the full implementation of the Memorandum of Action (MoA) the two parties willingly signed in October 2017,” he said.
“So the MoA must be implemented fully before we can even talk of suspension of the strike. If they implement the outstanding issues in the MoA fully and change the leadership of the negotiating team, then we can go back to the negotiation,” Mr Ogunyemi said.
The purpose of the meeting slated for 5 p.m. is to find a lasting solution to the ongoing strike.
The union embarked on strike three weeks ago over the poor funding of Nigerian universities, an alleged plan by the federal government to increase students’ fees and introduce an education bank, as well as non-implementation of previous agreements.
According to Mr Ogunyemi, the union’s position is aimed at repositioning the nation’s universities for global relevance.
“As they (schools) currently stand, they can neither attract competent foreign lecturers or foreign students who could add to their global rating.
“Our prayer is that the meeting should be productive, because contrary to the people’s belief, we don’t also enjoy embarking on strike. It affects us as individuals as it affects the nation.
“Unfortunately, that is the language the government understands. Each time ASUU goes on strike our work is disrupted. But what work are we doing under unfavorable conditions?” Mr Ogunyemi said.
Meanwhile, Members of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), on November 19 embarked on a protest to demand increased funding for education.
The protest was titled “Save education rally”.
The president of National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Danielson Akpan, said the dwindling allocation of funding to the sector is saddening.
“The funding keeps dropping every year,” Mr Akpan said.
The head of the International Relations department at the NLC, Uche Ekwe, also said much attention is not given to the education sector.
According to him, the major reason for the ongoing ASUU strike is poor funding of the sector.
Indications show that the ASUU strike action embarked upon by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) will still continue for a while at the meeting, held yesterday, with the Federal Government ended in a deadlock. No compromise or decision was reached after the meeting to end the ASUU Strike, which began at 3 p.m and ended at 8:15 p.m on Tuesday. The meeting will continue next week.
The Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, however, stated that government’s discussion with ASUU will continue next week. According to Ngige the delay in calling ASUU for a discussion was caused by the minimum wage negotiation.
He appealed to ASUU to put the interest of students, who are at the receiving end into consideration.
ASUU president, Biodun Ogunyemi, on the other hand, said the union have tendered its request at the meeting and also confirmed that the ASUU Strike meeting has been adjourned till next week.
According to him, no date has been fixed but “we will communicate the date to you tomorrow,” he told newsmen.
He said the union was forced to embark on the strike after its plea for the implementation of the 2009 agreement fell on deaf ears.
Mr Ogunyemi earlier said the government had promised to take action on issues raised in the last MOU signed by the two parties but “it does appear that federal government is dribbling the union.”
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), has stated that the union is ready to negotiate with the government toward ending its one-week old industrial action. This was disclosed by the President of the union Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi, who was a guest on TVC News Breakfast show on Tuesday. He frowned at the attitude of the FG towards the demands of the lecturers.
According to him, the letters sent to the Federal Government through the ministries of education and Labour since November 5th notifying them of the strike is yet to be replied.
“We wrote to inform the ministries that we had resumed our strike. We told them that we had resumed the strike we suspended in Sept. 2017 because government failed to implement agreements we signed. “The ministries signed to acknowledge receipt of the copies we gave them, but none has written a reply to us,” he said.
Ogunyemi further stated that it is quite surprising that observed that the federal government, which had consistently allocated seven percent to education in the last two years, suddenly woke up from slumber and announced a state of emergency in the education sector and promised to allocate 15 percent of its budget to the sector. He said that the union finds this unbelievable and deceitful. “We feel that the `sudden’ promise has more to do with the fact that we are in an election year,” he emphasized.
He alleged that the ruling class in Nigeria had no concern for the education of the poor.
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