By Harry Awurumibe , Editor,. Abuja Bureau
With the federal government and university lecturers still in the trenches over crisis in the education sector, President of Academics Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Professor Emmanuel Osodeke has once again said only President Muhammadu Buhari can resolve the issues which led to the protracted strike action in one day.
This is even as he has described the purported resumption of work by other university-based unions as none issue, arguing that ASUU does not represent other unions in the academic system in the dispute with the federal government.
Professor Osodeke who spoke on Channels Television breakfast programme Sunrise Daily on Friday accused the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu of distorting the facts of the ASUU demands by hammering only on the issue relating to improve salary structures of university lecturers.
Public university lecturers in Nigeria have been on sttrike since February 14, 2022 over ASUU’s demands which include Renegotiation of 2009 Agreement, Earned Academic Allowance and Revatilization Fund-
money meant for building infrastructure, upgrading libraries, hostels, and lecture theatres in Nigeria universities.
But six months down the line, efforts to resolve the issues which led to the strike action by ASUU have not yielded fruitful results inspite of the efforts made by the federal government by setting up committees to resolve the contentious issues.
To make the matter worse, Minister of Education on Thursday in Abuja told State House Correspondents that federal government will not pay the striking lecturers six months salary as it has adopted the “No Work No Pay Policy”.
This federal government latest
stand has however irked ASUU leadership as Osodeke has accused Adamu and other top government officials of not willing to see the end of the federal government and ASUU face-off.
Said he: “Minister Adamu Adamu and other minister representing the federal government are the problems why the strike has lingered to date. The Ministers and all other government officials are already biased hence talks on the issues have stalled”.
According to Osodeke: “We can resolve the issues in one day as it happened in 2013 under ex-President Goodluck Jonathan intervened directly by calling ASUU and government negotiating team to a closed doors meeting and the matter was resolved immediately “.
The ASUU boss insisted that the Union is ready to resolve the issues which led to the strike as soon as possible but regretted that government is not ready for a truce.
Asked if the federal government made an offer to ASUU and the Union rejected it, he said ASUU does not accept awards of money but insists on Principle of Collective Bargaining, adding that the Union is only demanding what have been earlier agreed upon between it and government.
“Government sent ASUU on strike when it refused to implement the 2009 Agreement on Collective Bargaining. And we
challenged government to come up with a document on what both parties agreed on in the past”, Osodeke insisted.
On the purported resumption of duty by three university-based unions on Monday
as was announced by the Minister of Education, Osodeke said ASUU is an independent body from other university-based unions hence it will not fight for other unions.
The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU), Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and other Associated Institutions (NASU), and the National Association of Academic Technologists (NAAT) had joined ASUU in downing tools in solidarity with its demands.
Meanwhile, the ASUU President has asked the federal government to investigate the activities of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), arguing that the intervention agency has not lived up to the expectations of the universities nationwide.
Said he: “ASUU has been demanding for a Judicial Commission of Inquiry into the activities of TETFund but our demand has met brick walls. We demand for investigation on how TETFund has performed. This is important and we must continue to demand for that”.
