₦airaland Forum

lexy2014:
What does ASUU have to offer?

ABUJA – THE Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU,ended its National Executive Committee, NEC meeting late Monday (yesterday), with a resolution not to embark on another strike action following the payment of half salaries to members by the federal government.

Rather,the union, according to Vanguard source, resolved to wait for the outcome of the intervention of the Speaker, House of Representatives,Femi Gbajabiamila in its faceoff with the government over alleged non implementation of the 2009 agreement by the latter.

Although,no member of the body including the president, Prof.Emmanuel Osodeke,who attended the meeting held at the University of Abuja campus where ASUU’s headquarters is located,has spoken about the outcome, a source said members resolved not to explore the strike option in getting the government address the contending issues.

It was gathered that some members had pushed for declaration of total and comprehensive strike across public universities across the country but majority kicked against the action, saying it was no longer fashionable under the present circumstance.

Those against the strike, argued that it would be wrong to embark on the action again,thus compelling students who have already returned to their various schools following earlier suspension of the action to return home.

The statement released by the Speaker of the House of Representatives,Femi Gbajabiamila,to the effect that government would not pay members full salaries as they were being expected,was said to have further deflated the argument by those who had pushed for strike as a last option

Some members had suggested that since the suspension of the strike was at the speaker’s instance following his meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari,it would be wrong to resume action when he (speaker) was still pushing to have the federal government rescind its decisions on no-work,no-pay policy.

A source from the meeting said, “embarking on another round of strike was not considered an option in resolving the current issues with the federal government at the meeting, “refusing to speak further.

Asked what really transpired at the meeting, he said,”You would hear the rest through the appropriate channel.”

“As a body, we have people that speak for us. You will hear from them on what really happened”,he said.

ASUU President, Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke did not pick calls made to his mobile telephone line. A follow-up message to the phone line was yet to be responded to at the time of filing this report.

Sacramento85:
But CONUA has been shouting there were not on strike. It was the school management that locks them out but they have been vocal about it that they were not on strike.

Fut9ure:
Thieves
ASUU na Thieves

You nor work you want collect money

LordIsaac:
The system, their employer, affords that ASUU closed the gates against their will. That's the point. Students must not suffer all. If it's not about money, maybe it's high time they also sacrificed 8 months salary. Students have done their own sacrifice consistently!

ElectGINeer:
The school authorities closed schools not Conua. They are not on strike. In OAU we still had lectures till late may with Conua lectures until the school authority close the school.

LordIsaac:
The leadership of ASUU must jettison the proposed strike action and explore the courts. He that wants equity must come with clean hands. As we speak, all laws are against their actions.

heykims:
And ur ASUU chairman could say they ain't like health workers who shouldn't be paid when on strike, abi?
Truth is no union deserves to be paid when they embark on strike going by international standard. Payment is at the govt's discretion which has been done for ASUU for years.
Don't bobo us about other services, the primary and number one job of a lecturer is to teach students.

heykims:
Chief no mind them jare. U didn't work for 8 months and u are expected to be paid, arrant nonsense. Then next u can decide to go 18 months and nobody challenges u.
Moreso, the case is in court. Why blackmailing the govt instead of pursuing winning the case?
At times we need checks and balances and it's good the govt called off their bluff. I don't know they are all attacking Ngige.
I lost my sympathy for the union when their President justified No work no pay for health workers but said it shouldn't apply to ASUU.

Oluwatobiloba07:
Best thing I ever see in Buhari regime is this, how will you not work and be expecting salary. You're paid for what you worked for, in those advance country you all want to run to where you do hourly jobs, are you telling me that you won't go to work for 8 months and they'll still pay you.

It's not done anywhere

You work, you get paid [left][/left]

Gorgeous1guy:
JORAISU has been on strike since October 2021 (joint unions in the research institutes including nasu, ssauthriai etc) and their salaries have always been paid up to date for more than 1 year.....but Ngige doesn't know this....
Nigeria will start to get better when we have sane people running the affairs of the nation.
ASUU should just go back to their strike cos this is a sign that none of the agreements signed will be implemented because govt will always claim that no money yet, government representatives continue to live in grand style

The Federal Government on Saturday explained why it failed to pay full salaries to lecturers under the aegis of the Academic Staff Union of Universities.

In a statement, by the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment, the government noted that members of ASUU were paid their October salary pro-rata.

According to the ministry, pro-rata was done because they cannot be paid for work not done.

The statement further clarified that the Honourable Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, never directed the Accountant General of the Federation to pay the university lecturers half salaries.

The statement reads in part, “Following the ruling of the Court of Appeal, which upheld the order of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria, asking ASUU to go back to work, the leadership of the union wrote to the Minister, informing him that they have suspended the strike. The Federal Ministry of Education wrote to him in a similar vein and our labour inspectors in various states also confirmed that they have resumed work.

“So, the Minister wrote to the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and Planning, directing that their salaries should be restored. They were paid in pro-rata for the number of days that they worked in October, counting from the day that they suspended their industrial action. Pro-rata was done because you cannot pay them for work not done. Everybody’s hands are tied.”

The ministry equally faulted a statement by the Chairperson of ASUU, Usman Danfodiyo University Sokoto branch, Muhammad N. Al-Mustapha, accusing the Honourable Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, of biased payment of salaries to selected professional members of the union.

The Academic Staff Union of Universities, University of Jos chapter on Friday ordered its members to stay at home indefinitely, pending the payment of withheld salaries by the federal government.

The ASUU branch made this known in a statement made available to our correspondent and signed by the branch chairperson, Professor Lazarus Maigoro.

The PUNCH had on Thursday reported exclusively how the government had paid half salaries to the striking university lecturers.

The statement partly reads, “One of the issues agreed at the meeting was that 50% of the backlog of eight months arrears of our withheld salaries will be paid to our members immediately but as at the time of writing this press release, only 17 days prorated October salary was paid to our members by the office of the Accountant General of the Federation.

“Having stayed for about nine months running now, our members in the University of Jos considered this an insult to them by the Accountant Gereral of the Federation.

“Is the Accountant Gencral of the Federation actually answerable to the Minister of Labour? So, if today the Minister of Agriculture directs the Accountant General of the Federation to withhold the salaries of the staff of the Agricultural Research
Institutes who have been on strike for over a year, will he obey that?

“We wonder why Ngige is keen
about withholding the salaries of ASUU members because staff of some Agricultural Research Institutes have been on strike for almost a year but they have been receiving their salaries regularly. Is this policy only
for ASUU members?

We are also aware that the Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, wrote a memo to the Accountant General asking him to pay our members only from the day we suspended the strike.

By this singular act, the Minister of Labour and Employment has casualised the work of the University Lecturers unfortunately.

“This further creates doubts on our minds as to whether the understanding reached with the leadership of the House of Representatives on some of the issues will be implemented at all
by those who are saddled with the responsibility of doing so in order to avoid further needless strikes.

“From all indications, the Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, has personalised the matter between him and our union and is on a mission for vendetta.

“It has become crystal clear now that he wasn’t happy that the House of Representatives brokered a truce on some of the issues we went on strike for and has gone behind to undermine it.

“It is also very clear to us now why he shamelessly walked out on the leadership of the House of Representatives at one of the meetings with all stakeholders to the glare of all Nigerians because he never wanted any form of resolution to be reached on the issues being discussed and is the nation.

“In view of the bottleneck placed by Ngige towards paying our members the backlog of our salaries, the congress of ASUU University of Jos met today November 4, 2022 and resolved to stay at home, though not on strike until the backlog of the withheld salaries are paid.

For the avoidance of doubt, our members are back to work, willing and ready to work but are unable to work. Based on the revised academic calendar for
the 2020/2021 session approved by the senate of the University, lectures should have started already but the challenge of lack of payment of salaries has constrained our members from going to the classroom to teach.

“What this implies is that the students who have resumed already will have to wait indefinitely while we wait for our withheld salaries to be paid to us”.

The Federal Government only paid lecturers under the aegis of the Academic Staff Union of Universities for 18 working days in the month of October, The PUNCH has exclusively gathered.

Lecturers and senior members of ASUU, who spoke to our correspondent under strict confidence noted that the government only paid half salaries.

The PUNCH had reported how ASUU called off its eight-month-old strike on October 14, 2022. Lecturers were encouraged to resume back to work by the union on that same day.

Speaking with our correspondent, a senior member of the National Executive Council, said, “We were only paid for the days after the strike. I received a half salary. Other members are angry right now, they are blaming the NEC for calling off the strike.”

Another member, who confirmed the development, said, “Yes, it is true, I received half salary. It seems the government is set to kill unionism in the country but we are ready for them.

Munamoqel:
from 14 to 31 na u wan reap where you didn't sow .it our tax money ole

divinehand2003:
I remember that the minister of labour says we shouldn't worry about Nigerian doctors leaving to other countries at all. In fact it is a welcome development as these guys in diaspora will make returns to develop the Nigerian economy. Moreover he added that the country’s universities will continue to produce thousands of doctors on yearly basis that will meet our health care needs.

JJuanMiguel:
IPPIS also failed it, and the third platform also, can't remember the name.
You people are in for a long thing

Gkemz:
I'm tired of hearing about ASUU strike. A set of greedy lecturers who care nothing about students other than their selfish demands. If they like let them complete the strike one year. More reasons the body has to be disbanded.

zikter:
which demands have they met? You people will just be talking. How does promising to appreciate minies in 2023 budget translate to meeting demands when the useless government violates even signed agreements with reckless abandone let alone a mere promise. Let bring out part of the looted monies they are using to send their children abroad, attend to their health abroad and now scheduling meetings abroad to fund education

gassbee:
try n b current and not just criticise blindly, FG has met more than 80% of their demand

JJuanMiguel:
UTAS failed the integrity test in the newly submitted report by NITDA.
ASUU will likely lose the appeal, at that point FG won't even be obliged to pay any percentage of these 7 months arrears.

sprints1:
Arsenal yeye team I expect them to win games like these next week na another pepper day for them spurs will rip them apart harry Kane will do justice to them anybody believing arsenal to make top 4 is still dreaming in lalaland. October is coming they go hear am.

sprints1:
Arsenal yeye team I expect them to win games like these next week na another pepper day for them spurs will rip them apart harry Kane will do justice to them anybody believing arsenal to make top 4 is still dreaming in lalaland. October is coming they go hear am.