ASUU - The five-month-old face-off between the Federal Government and Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, over non-implementation of the 2009 agreement assumed a dramatic dimension yesterday, as the government vowed to sack any lecturer who fails to return to class within seven days.
The government has, therefore, directed all vice-chancellors of federal universities that are currently on strike to immediately re-open for academic and allied activities.
The striking lecturers on their part, declared the directive by the Federal Government a joke, saying they will never be intimidated into calling off the strike.
Supervising Minister of Education, Mr Nyesom Wike who briefed journalists in Abuja yesterday on the strike said it was rather unfortunate that after a 13-hour meeting with President Goodluck Jonathan in Abuja on November 4, 2013, the union came up with new conditions before they could call off the strike.
He said it was obvious that the new conditions put forward by ASUU were not in the interest of the nation. One of the conditions was that President Jonathan should facilitate endorsement of resolutions reached with him, which must be signed by a high ranking government official, preferably the Attorney-General of the Federation but not a permanent secretary. ASUU said their representative as well as the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Abdulwahid Omar, would stand as witnesses.
The striking lecturers also wanted the N200 billion agreed upon as 2013 revitalisation fund for public universities to be lodged with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and disbursed to the benefitting universities. They also want the government to pay their salary arrears before resuming academic activities.
Resume or get sacked - Wike
Speaking with newsmen, yesterday, Wike said: "All Vice-chancellors of Federal Universities that are on strike should immediately reopen for academic and allied activities as directed by their Pro-Chancellors. Vice-Chancellors should ensure that staff who resume for work are provided with the enabling environment for academic and allied activities.
"Any academic staff who fails to resume on or before December 4, 2013, automatically ceases to be staff of the institution and vice-chancellors are also directed to advertise vacancies (internal and external) in their institutions". "He also accused ASUU of sabotaging the effort of government in addressing the issues especially after having a 13-hour meeting with President Jonathan where all issues were resolved and firm commitments were made.
He said ASUU first met with Vice- President Namadi Sambo but there was no positive response; so they met with President Jonathan on November 4.
He said: "On November 4, 2013, in a 13 hour meeting, President Goodluck Jonathan met with the ASUU executive, the labour union leaders from Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, and Trade Union Congress, TUC, where all issues were resolved and firm commitments made to address the lingering issues.
"It is noteworthy that Mr. President's gesture was more than sufficient to guarantee the commitment of Government to address all issues as resolved at the meeting with Mr. President.
"At the end of the meeting with Mr. President, the ASUU executive promised to meet with its National Executive Committee to present the resolutions reached and report back by Friday November 8, 2013.
"As a responsible government we cannot allow continuous closure of our public universities for this length of time (five months), as this poses danger to the education system, the future of our youths and national development".
The minister therefore directed NUC to ensure all the Federal Government universities comply with the directives saying, "the National Universities Commission, NUC, is hereby directed to monitor the compliance of these directives by various institutions".
When asked whether the directive by the Federal Government to vice chancellors to reopen was not against labour laws, he said if there were any grievances they should seek redress in the law court.
Threats will only worsen it - ASUU
However, ASUU, in its reaction said the threat by the Federal Government to sack university lecturers would only worsen the situation and "another long path to make the strike linger more than necessary."
With the threat, ASUU said it was evident now that the Federal Government was not ready to implement any resolutions it reached with the union.
While the government is threatening to sack the lecturers, the union disclosed that Nigerian public universities needed 60,000 lecturers owing to failure of government to employ.
The treasurer of the union, Dr. Ademola Aremu, who spoke on behalf of the union said the Federal Government would only succeed in wasting the time of Nigerians and youths in the country if it failed to perfect the resolutions.
ASUU said it was trying to do all necessary things as regards the resolutions reached with the government because it had reneged on the promises it made with ASUP, resident doctors, and health workers.
Describing the threat as an insult to the sense and sensibilities of Nigerians who were waiting on the Federal Government for positive reaction, the union said, 'with the latest action, the Federal Government has shown that they are not committed to all they have been saying.
We are saying that since we agreed at the meeting that the sum of N200 billion is for 2012 and 2013 revitalisation, the Federal Government should deposit same in the Central Bank of Nigeria. We are already in November and December is around the corner.
If they don't do that now, when do they want to do it?. We are saying the non-victimisation clause should be included as agreed while the renegotiation of the 2009 agreement should be included as agreed with the President.
"It is a pity if the Federal Government is not willing to perfect the resolutions reached with union. This is why we find it difficult to hold our leaders by their words. How can someone be threatening to sack lecturers when universities are already short-staffed by almost 60,000.
We are not in military era. The military tried it and failed. This one will fail again. They can re-open the schools. ASUU did not shut down the universities. It was the school management that ordered the students to go back home."
Source: Vanguard
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