The Academic Staff Union of Nigerian
Universities (ASUU) Wednesday threatened to
shut down the nation’s universities through a
nationwide strike if the Federal Government
fails to implement the 2009 agreement it
reached with the union.
Zonal Coordinator, Abuja Zone of the union, Dr
Theophilus Lagi, stated this at a briefing in
Abuja on Wednesday.
Dr. Lagi stated that government had only
implemented 30 per cent of the provisions on
the NEEDS Assessment budget in 2013.
The funds, he said, was disbursed
indiscriminately to university councils, as a fall
out of the six months industrial action it had
embarked upon in 2009.
He therefore called on the federal government
to fully implement the 2009 agreement it
reached with the union in order to prevent the
nation’s universities from going on strike.
Lagi said: “The struggle to implement the
2009 ASUU/FGN agreement is not about the
union. It is not about the personal benefits of
the members only.
“It is about saving the university system from
total collapse.
‘The current issues in contention includes
funding of universities for revitalization in line
with the MOU,FGN entered into with ASUU in
2013, re negotiation of the FGN/ASUU 2009
agreement which ASUU believes will reposition
the entire education sector, facilitation of the
registration of the Nigerian Universities
Pension Management company, NUPEMCO,
among others in the list.”
Dr Lagi who also regretted the failure by
government to reply series of letters written
to it and not taking any concrete steps
towards implementing the core provisions of
the agreement, described the present step by
the union as designed to appeal and
conscientiously inform Nigerians on the state
of neglect of lectures by government and to
serve as a prelude to full blown strike.
Earlier, the University of Abuja (UNIABUJA)
Chairman of the union, Dr Ben Ugheoke, who
was also at the briefing, frowned at
government’s attitude towards the
establishment of the Pension Company
despite the fact that the union had fulfilled its
side of the bargain including the payment of
its counterpart funding.
Ugheoke stated that the union was ready to
go ahead and incorporate the company should
the government give the directive.
He said: “We have not joined other PFAs
because of the irregularities in the operation
of the scheme. The system lacks integrity.
That is why we asked our members to wait
for our own company.
“Initially, ASUU was told to commit N600
million to the registration; from that N600
million, it was increased to N740m but late
last year, it was raised to N1 billion and I
want to say that ASUU has already paid the
N1 billion. It has been with the government
since 2013 and yet government is frustrating
the registration of the company.”
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