Varsity teachers remained adamant last
night, saying their strike would go on,
despite the government’s shifting of its
position. The strike has been on for four
months.
More cash has been pledged for projects
on the campuses. Besides, the earned
allowances due to the teachers have been
increased from the initial N30 billion offer,
which the Academic Staff Union of
Universities (ASUU) rejected. The teachers
are insisting on the 2009 agreement,
which they say President Goodluck
Jonathan was part of. Besides, they say,
they do not trust the government.
According to a circular by the Vice
Chancellor of the Federal University,
Otuoke, Bayelsa State, Prof. Bolaji Aluko,
to the staff of the school, quoted
yesterday by the news website, Sahara
Reporters, the government has pledged to
spend N200 billion on the universities in
the 2014 budget and the same amount
annually for the next three to four years.
This is in addition to the N100 billion
already made available this year, but
which ASUU has rejected.
The government has also increased to
N40 billion, as a first installment, funds
for the payment of earned allowances to
the striking lecturers – an improvement
from the N30 billion previously released.
On the earned allowances, Aluko said:
“Government will top it up with further
releases once universities are through
with the disbursement of this new figure
of N40 million. So, Vice-Chancellors are
urged to expedite this disbursement
within the shortest possible time using
guiding templates that have been sent by
the CVC,” the circular said.
Aluko said the latest development
followed meetings on September 19 and
Oct 11 of representatives of the
Association of Vice-Chancellors of
Nigerian Universities, led by its Chairman,
Prof. Hamisu of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa
University (ATBU) and ASUU
representatives led by its President,
Dr.Nasir Fagge, with Vice-President
Namadi Sambo and Minister of Education
Nyesome Wike.
A source in the Ministry of Education last
night also confirmed that the meeting
took place.
“But the government decided to leave the
announcement of the decision to the
ASUU chiefs,” the source said.
It was gathered that Sambo urged ASUU
to call off the strike, as he apologised for
the “take-it-or-leave-it” comments
credited to Minister of Finance Dr. Ngozi
Okonjo-Iweala at the beginning of the
strike. The Minister did not seem to have
been involved in either meeting, perhaps
as the government’s way of soothing the
feelings of the university teachers.
Other points of agreement at the meetings
include:
•Project Prioritisation: Universities will
now be allowed to determine their
priorities and not be “rail-roaded” into
implementing a pre-determined set of
projects with respect to the NEEDS
assessment. Decisions are not to be
centralized;
•TETFund Intervention: The government
assured the teachers that the operations
of the TETFund will not be impaired, and
that the regular TETFund intervention
disbursement to universities will continue,
unaffected. So the NEEDS assessment
capital outlays are in addition to regular
TETFund intervention;
•Project Monitoring: A new
Implementation Monitoring Committee
(IMC) for the NEEDS Assessment
intervention for universities has been set
up to take over from the Suswam
Committee. The new one is under the
Federal Ministry of Education and chaired
by the Minister of Education. In addition,
to build confidence and ensure faithful
implementation and prevent any relapse
as before, the Vice President will meet
quarterly with the implementors to
monitor progress.
.Blueprint: ASUU was mandated to submit
a blueprint for revitalising the universities
to the Vice President.
Prof. Aluko stated that a signed document
will soon be issued to itemise the full
issues on which the consensus was
reached.
But ASUU last night was unimpressed
with the new offer. National Treasurer Dr.
Ademola Aremu said the offer failed to
meet the teachers’ expectations.
He said the offer falls short of the
agreement signed with ASUU by the
government.
Aremu insisted that ASUU would not end
the strike until the 2009 agreement is fully
implemented by injecting N500 billion into
the universities yearly to shore up the
system’s quality.
Aremu, who spoke to our correspondent
on the telephone, said any offer below
what is contained in the signed
agreement, would amount to unilateral
repudiation of an agreement the
government willingly signed in 2009.
According to the unionist, ASUU is not
making any new demand, but a mere
implementation of an agreement. He
pointed out that the Memorandum of
Understanding (MOU) signed by both
parties in 2009 stated that the
government would commit N1.5 trillion to
the system in three years.
He said: “ Even if the Federal Government
made that promise, it would be a
unilateral repudiation of the 2009
agreement. By now, the government
should have injected N500 billion. That
amounts to N100 billion in 2012 and
N400 billion in the current year.
“As a matter of fact, any new
commitment from the Federal
Government is belated. Implementation of
the agreement ought to have started
before this year. I don’t think there is any
way we can trust this government, going
by its past behaviour on this issue.
“The mandate from our principal as at the
last time we met was that we won’t end
the strike until the agreement is fully
implemented.
“We do not need promises again. What we
need now is actual implementation. What
if they do not release the funds again
after making the promise?
“It was this same Mr President that mid-
wifed the agreement in 2009 when he
was the Vice President. The MoU was in
his custody. He studied the agreement
well before asking then President Umaru
Yar’Adua to sign it. We can’t trust this
government. source talkofnaija.com

These ASUU leaders should just perish like Pharaoh and his chiefs. They are too stubborn, they don't have feelings for students.

does assu want to tell us that if what they are asking is released, they would spend every single naira on the universities?.....cmon who are these people decieving, if they truly care about the students and universities,, as they claim,, they would at least try to meet the FG halfway.. Not stand at a spot issuing commands...... This country sef ehn!

dey should nt call off d strike again till next yr,,ASUU make una stubbone well well make una no gree oooo

i will weep#

#operation sue ASUU#

ASUU now the ruling body

ASUU is teaching Nigerians how to make our leaders to be responsible and keep to promises and agreements. Its a whole new lecture and it is good for the country. Somebody somewhere, some group of people, must teach govt this lesson because they have taken Nigerians for granted over the years and we can't continue like that. ASUU is doing this inspite of the no-work-no pay rules which has denied them their two months salary and still counting. This means that they are ready to go all the way to correct this promise and fail attitude of the Nigerian government. By the time they are through with government, other sectors and Nigerians at large would follow suit. Govt on their part will then sit up and learn to keep promises. Nigerians should learn to endure for positive change to come. All these crying and abuse we ve been doing over the years have not helped us. The rich are getting richer while the poor are getting poorer. The time for change is now. ASUU has started and we ll do good to join them to pressure the FG to keep to their agreement. After that, we all should also join forces with students and sanitize the university of all the corrupt and evil tendencies of the lecturers. That's how we can grow. It may be that the revolution has started.

This mod is useless and I wonder wat his doing here, this thread has no direction, he is jst there closing better thread

www.nairaland.com/1482661/ASUU-rejects-n600-
billion-fg was posted earlier check the details

i knw al dis ll 1day b ova bt i dnt knw wen

Students of nowadays are just dull. Only students can make ASUU cal of dis try. Yes, d universities need attention but we shudnt forget its same universities dat has produced billions of graduates includin d President. Y wudnt they be considerate nd folo d FG wit dia pace, nd let tins gradually take place. D moni may b available but we shud undastand economics, if such moni is released at once nd pumped into d economy, it wil definitely cripple it. I guess dat must b among d reasons d FG are givin...
I urge students to wake up nd fight for dia future, ASUU members have a future already, FG members have dias already, so while play with ours. Even in d current universities state, wot are lecturers teachin? All are just lazy. Most of my lecturers are stil dictatin dia notes dey used during undagrad to students. Is it wen d structures improve dat dey wil improve too?

i'v a problem with the source of this news.
What do they(ASUU) do in the meeting?
They are suppose to negotiate with fg and not just go there and listen to offers.

Good job ASUU! Hustling Continue, Boiz must storm Unilag wit range rover.

ASUU and f.g wen u guys are done fooling yourselves just let me knw bt for now i dnt give a fu*k abt u guys

ZackiGp: i'v a problem with the source of this news.
What do they(ASUU) do in the meeting?
They are suppose to negotiate with fg and not just go there and listen to offers.

help me ask dem abeeeeeeg!!! dose guys are becoming sumtin else. why didnt dey say so before d meeting ended?