Breaking News
ASUU strike: NUPENG
threatens solidarity action
Nigeria Union of
Petroleum and Natural Gas
Workers, NUPENG,
weekend, threatened stop
distribution of petroleum
products across the
country if the Federal
Government failed to
implement the agreement
reached with the
Academic Staff Union of
Universities, ASUU.
Though no specific date
was fixed for the
commencement of the
soliarity strike, the union
said the strike became
necessary in view of the
lingering ASUU crisis which
the government had failed
to resolve in the last three
months.
NUPENG President, Igwe
Achese, who spoke at the
union’s National
Administrative Council,
NAC, meeting, weekend in
Lagos, said NUPENG was
not happy at the crisis
facing public university
system in the country.
He blamed the crisis on
government’s failure to
honour agreements,
lamenting that this had
led to the proliferation of
strikes in nearly all sectors
of the economy since the
beginning of the year.
According to him: “We
appeal to government to
implement agreement
reached with ASUU so that
students can go back to
school. If the crisis in the
sector is not resolved, we
will soon direct our
members to embark on
solidarity strike.”
Achese blamed the
Ministry of Labour for
failing in its responsibility
to check the break-down
and abuse of laws
governing industrial
relations practice in the
country by employers
including government.
“The Ministry of Labour
needs to be proactive if
we must get these issues
nipped in the bud. The
ministry also needs to
make sure that
agreements reached or
communiqué signed are
implemented.
“The ministry has a big
role to play to avert
strikes in the country.
When unions begin to lose
faith in the ministry that is
when we have this kind of
crisis. The labour minister
should be firm in making
sure that the right
decisions are taken.
“As it is now, every activity
in the Ministry of Labour is
in the office of the
Secretary to the
Government of the
Federation, SGF, which
ought not to be so. The
role of the SGF should be
to intervene only when
the need arises.”
It would be recalled that
the NUT last week gave
the Federal Government
two weeks ultimatum to
honour the agreement it
reached with ASUU or face
total shut-down of the
education sector in the
country. -CULLED FROM VANGUARD
NEWS