₦airaland Forum

NUC,VC's, Others Regret ASUU Strike
The 28th Conference of the Association of Vice
Chancellors of Nigerian Universities (AVCNU)
Tuesday opened in Akure, Ondo State capital with a
declaration by stakeholders that everybody is a
loser in the lingering dispute between the Academic
Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and the Federal
Government.
The conference hosted by the Federal University of
Technology, Akure (FUTA) drew participants from
the 129 public and private universities in Nigeria
and other stakeholders like the Institute of
Chattered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) and the
National University Commission (NUC).
In his welcome address, the FUTA Vice Chancellor,
Prof. Adebiyi Daramola lamented that a total of four
months had been lost to the ASUU strike by all
public universities in the country and that it
was already having negative effects on the
universities. Details to follow

ASUU divided over move to call off
strike
The hope that the four month old strike by the
Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, may be
called off this week, following President Goodluck
Jonathan’s intervention last week, may be dashed
as the 61 chapters of the union are divided over the
move to call off the strike.
President Jonathan held a meeting with the
leadership of ASUU last week, where he made some
offers which ASUU was expected to take to their
members for deliberation with the hope that it will
pacify them into resuming academic activities this
week.
Congresses of the 61 chapters of the union were
therefore held, yesterday, while the National
Executive Council, NEC, meeting will hold tomorrow
in one of the northern universities.
The outcome of the union’s congresses indicated
that there was disagreement on the need to call off
the strike.
Vanguard gathered that while some ASUU chapters
were ready to suspend the strike in the light of the
President’s intervention, others insisted that they
will continue the strike due to what they described
as their distrust for the government.
It was learnt that while the University of Lagos,
UNILAG, resolved to suspend the strike, chapters
like the University of Ibadan, UI; University of
Benin, UNIBEN; University of Calabar, UNICAL;
University of Jos, UNIJOS and the Lagos State
University, LASU, said the strike must continue,
arguing that the Federal Government could not be
trusted to fulfil its promise of injecting over N1.1
trillion to universities in the next five years.
Voting at UNIJOS
Members UNIJOS chapter, yesterday, voted
overwhelmingly for the strike to continue.
After receiving briefings on what transpired at last
week’s meeting of the union’s representatives with
President Goodluck Jonathan and after going
through copies of the resolution of the meeting, 194
members voted for the strike to continue while 80
voted for a suspension.
Sources told Vanguard that after hours of debate by
those for and against the continuation of the strike,
it was obvious that majority felt that the meeting
with the president did not achieve much.
Those who spoke in favour of the strike to continue
wondered why the strike should be called off on the
basis of pleas and verbal promises by the president,
when the government is allegedly reputed for not to
honoring agreements.
They were said to have argued that the suffering by
students and members in the last four months
would be a waste if something concrete did not
come out of the strike to improve the situation in
universities.
It was further gathered that those for the
suspension of the strike spoke passionately on the
need to consider the impact of the strike on
students and the gesture from President Jonathan,
who met personally with ASUU leaders and pleaded
with them to suspend the strike.
A few of them were quoted as saying it was better
to suspend the strike and find other ways of
pursuing their demands so as not to lose the
support of the people.
It was learnt that the Branch ASUU Chairman, Dr.
David Jangkham, after announcing the result of the
voting, said it would be taken to the national body
which would collate the referendum on the issue
from various chapters to come up with a position on
whether the strike would be suspended or
sustained.
A member, who spoke on condition of anonymity,
expressed fears that the referenda in other
branches might follow the same trend “if the
briefing we got here is what they got.”
UNILAG
A source at University of Lagos, UNILAG, chapter,
told Vanguard that the debate at its congress was
on whether to end or suspend the strike.
He said: “We eventually moved to suspend the
strike and end it only when the President pumps in
the first N220 billion into the universities in January
2014.
“Although this is not totally in line with the 2009
agreement, we feel that we can suspend the strike
out of respect for the President. We just want to
give him the benefit of doubt, and hope that he
fulfills his promise.”
LASU
At Lagos State University, LASU, one of the
executive members of ASUU, who spoke to
Vanguard on condition of anonymity, affirmed that
though the chapter was not averse to the proposal
of President Jonathan, but the consensus at its
congress was that ASUU should not just be a
monitoring body when the fund is finally injected.
He said: “After our congress, which lasted several
hours, it was the resolve of our chapter that the
strike should not be called off, because we are
uncomfortable with the fact that the Federal
Government has said that ASUU will just be a
monitoring officer, while the Minister of Education
will be the implementation officer.
“We argued that we must be part and parcel of how
the funds are managed and what they have
earmarked for within the period of five years.
“How can we know if the Ministry of Education and
other authorities are prudently spending the funds
for the proposed projects if ASUU is not part of the
management committee? So, our position is that
the strike should not be called off.”
LASU’s internal issues
The source added that LASU chapter of ASUU may
embark on its local action, after the national strike
is suspended or called off if the university’s
Governing Council and the State Government fail to
adequately address some of its local issues, which
border on members’ welfare and a reduction in the
institution’s tuition fees.
He said: “It is our resolve at the congress that if the
state government and the university’s Governing
Council, which is meeting on Wednesday, fail to
address our local issues adequately, we shall
embark on local actions.
“The university management has wasted four
months without addressing our local issues, which
border on the casualisation of our academic staff,
the steep increment in tuition fees paid by students
and the non-implementation of the Universities
Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 2012, which allows
academic staff on professorial cadre to retire at 70
years against the former 65 years.”
At UI
At the University of Ibadan, Vanguard gathered that
members asked their leadership to commit the
President to signing the resolution of FG/ASUU
meeting held last week and include non-
victimisation clause.
The Chairman, ASUU, University of Ibadan, Dr.
Segun Ajiboye, said that the union had set up
project monitoring committee to ensure that funds
released by government was not misappropriated.
Ajiboye maintained that it was not how quick the
strike ends but how well it ends, adding that the
goal of the strike must be actualised.
According to him, it was regrettable that it took the
Federal Government four months to think education
was an important sector, adding that no country in
the world plays with education the way Nigerian
leaders do.
David-West
Also, former Minister of Petroleum, Professor Tam
David-West said, yesterday, that ASUU would
continue to go on strike as long as injustice
remained in the system.
He said this at the UI-ASUU congress, where he
vowed to always support all the struggles that
would lead to the rejuvenation of the education
sector.

ASUU strike: Lecturers
want to continue
The Academic Staff Union of Universities’
attempt to call off its lingering strike still
remains contentious as lecturers of the
University of Jos have insisted that the
ongoing strike continues.
Chairman of the chapter, Dr. David Jankam
who made this known yesterday while
speaking with newsmen in the state said its
members have not see any substance in the
dialogue with the federal government to
warrant calling off the strike.
According to Jankam, “We have just rounded
off our meeting, and as a matter of fact, our
members voted overwhelmingly for the
continuation of the state strike.
“I can also confirm to you that five of the
eight universities that made up the Bauchi
Zone of ASUU have also voted for
continuation of the strike, and the general
saying is that the federal government has not
shown any commitment so far.
“We started the meeting
by briefing our members
on issues resolved with the federal
government in their last meeting with the
president of ASUU.
“But responding to the briefing, our members
observed that the main issues that led to the
strike were not discussed as part of the
meeting in Aso Rock.
“As such, my members said president
Jonathan is taking them for a ride by trying to
divert attention from the core subjects of the
strike”
According to Dr. Jankam, “I will now convey
the resolve of our branch to our national
president in our NEC meeting scheduled for
this week. If the majority of the chapter
voted for call off, it will be called off, but if
majority of the chapters voted for
continuation, so be it” said Dr. Jankam.

ASUU Strike Updates: UNILAG, UI,
Others Voted In Congresses To Call Off
Strike
CAMPUSTIMES
Barring a last-minute change, the National
Executive Committee of ASUU will at its meeting on
Wednesday night suspend the lingering ASUU strike
to allow public university students to return to their
classes as reports from the various local congresses
of the union today has shown.
Campus Times gathered that at the University,
members of ASUU in the University who have been
front-liners in the industrial action today accepted
the new offer from the FG and voted that the strike
be suspend. Other Universities that have so far
voted for the suspension of the industrial action are
Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Uthman Dan Fodio
University Sokoto, Federal University of Technology
MINNA, and the University of Lagos. Others are, the
University of Calabar, Federal University of
Technology Akure, and Ekiti State University. As of
Press time, only the University of Benin has refused
to yield to the call that the 4-month old ASUU strike
be suspended.
It will be recall the the Academic Staff Union of
Nigeria Universities (ASUU) has on 1 July, 2013
embarked on an indefinite strike to put pressure on
the FG to implement the 2009 agreement it entered
into with the Union.

ASUU meets tomorrow;
may call off strike Wed/
Thurs in Kano
THE Academic Staff Union of Nigerian Universities
(ASUU) will tomorrow hold a referendum, where
the lecturers will discuss the outcome of this
week’s meeting with President Goodluck
Jonathan.
At tomorrow’s meeting, the varsity teachers are
expected to review the months long industrial
action and take a decision on whether or not to
end the four-month-old strike. Already, notices
were said to have been sent out by the local
chapters of ASUU to their members, calling on
them to attend, so they could be part of the
important meeting.
The NEC of the union will meet on Wednesday in
Kano to ratify the decision of the congresses after
which a decision to end or continue the strike will
be taken.
It will be the first time the lecturers will meet,
after the 13-hour long meeting they held with the
president and observers are optimistic that the
strike will be called off soon.

ASUU may end STRIKE on or before
Friday, 15th Nov.
FAYSALKO
The strike by Academic Staff Union of Universities
(ASUU) may end on or before 15th November,2013
if feelers from the union’s zonal congresses are
anything to go by.
Journalists gathered from reliable sources that the
national leadership had briefed the zonal chapters
of the union on the outcome of the recent meeting
with President Goodluck Jonathan.
A source close to the leadership told journalists in
Zaria yesterday that “The zonal congresses where
held on Wednesday 6th November, 2013. For
example, the Kano Zone meeting was held at the
Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) Zaria.
“At the end of the meeting the body language of
ASUU chairmen that make up the zone and
attended the meeting indicated that they may
accept the offer of the president, but you know this
depends on the outcome of the congresses of the
various universities that make up each zone.
“All the universities in Nigeria that are participating
in the strike will now hold their individual
congresses on Monday, 11th November,2013 to
brief their lecturers on what the president has
offered. If majority of the lecturers in every
university agree to accept the offer of the federal
government, it means that the national leadership
of ASUU will call off the strike on or before Friday,
15th November,2013 as all the results of the
congresses would have been collated latest by
Wednesday.
“We are optimistic but it depends on the decision
that individual lecturers would make,” the source
said.
Chairman of ASUU-ABU Zaria chapter, Dr.
Muhammad Kabir Aliyu, confirmed that ABU Zaria
would have its congress on Monday next week.

ASUU Strike To Be Called Off
Next Week – SUG President Urged Lecturers
To Suspend Strike
There are strong indications that the over 4 months
old strike of the Academic Staff Union of
Universities (ASUU) may be called off next week.
That ordinarily should be an all round good news but
it’s good news with so many bad and worrisome
contents in it. What informed this conclusion? While
I agree that the strike has dragged on for too long, it
is important to also note that until recently when
the president of the country personally engaged the
union in talks, talks between the Federal
Government and the Academic Staff Union of
Universities (ASUU) had broken and of course talks
broke down over the non-implementation of an
agreement its willingly entered into with ASUU in
2009, after 3 years of negotiations.
However, the Nigerian government failed to
implement the agreement, instead of doing the
needful, top government officials employed threats,
blackmail and street-gutter propaganda. Perhaps
nothing better demonstrates the contempt that
government has for public education than the way it
has handled this particular strike, the time it took
the president to personally meet with the striking
union, the meeting amounts to dousing a roaring
fire with spittle.
Recently, Minister of information, Mr. Labaran Maku,
in an attempt to give the false impression that the
2009 ASUU/FGN agreement is not implementable
declared that government activities could shut
down if all demands of the Academic Staff Union of
Universities (ASUU) were to be met, how come the
same government that spends over N3 trillion
between 2009 and now to bail out failed banks did
not shut down? If the same government could spend
over $1billion to buy over warlords and militants
from Niger Delta under a fraudulent amnesty
program and yet did not go bankrupt why would
funding universities shut it down? If this
government could spend sum of N1.3 trillion
annually on members of the National Assembly and
the economy is not leaking why would ASUU
demands for quality education bankrupt Nigeria? If
the unconstitutional office of the “First Lady” could
draw funds from public purse to finance profligacies
and yet government has not shutdown, why will a
simple agreement shut Nigeria down? and also if a
small clique of politicians and oil marketers could
steal over $7billion from the oil subsidy funds and
the economy is still intact, how is N500 billion spent
on the future of young Nigerians shut us down? If a
minister could buy two armored vehicle for herself
at N255 million and the economy did not collapse,
then where is the wisdom in Mr. Labaran Maku and
federal governments claim that spending just N500
billion annually on University education is what
would sink the ship of the Nigerian government?
After 13 hours meeting with the president however,
there is a fresh offer and a fresh agreement, if
media reports are correct, the federal government is
prepared to spend N220 billion on the universities
each year for the next 5 years. Shortly after the
meeting, ASUU president was not definite on
whether the 2009 agreement has actually been met
or not, he simply told newsmen that the union will
consult with members on the new message from
the president and come up with a position. With that
statement it is right to conclude that government
has made a new offer entirely different from the
provisions of the 2009 agreement.
Already the federal government did not go into that
meeting with ASUU with the mind of sincerely
resolving the conflicts or implementing the 2009
agreement because prior to that meeting there have
been widespread reports in the media that
government had a plan B which is to forcefully
reopen the universities with or without ASUU, from
this it is clear that government is intimidating and
pressurizing ASUU to accept whatever offer it puts
on the table.
Unfortunately the NLC has also been used as a
conduit to pressurize ASUU to call off the strike.
This however, is not surprising the NLC has a
reputation for betraying the masses of this country
one would not forget in a hurry the removal of
subsidy in 2012 and how the NLC handled it. In
January 2012 during the anti-fuel price struggle, the
government made similar accusations, propaganda
and blackmails, which led to the Nigeria Labour
Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC)
hastily calling off the general strike. Today,
Nigerians are the worst for it. While it will be a great
relieve to go back to school, it will also be
important to put into consideration those issues that
led to the over 4 months strike and the gains from it
because it is 4 months of an academic life that can
never be regained, to this end it will be ridiculous
and sad to go back to our universities and still meet
the dilapidated hostels, laboratories where stoves
are still been used as bunsen burners, over crowded
lecture rooms and all those infrastructural decay
ASUU talked about. Already there is a directive from
the President Jonathan that IGR should be increased
and this is already being carried out in some
universities particularly Federal University of
Agriculture (FUNAAB) and the University of Ibadan
(UI), already acceptance fees have been increased.
This is a direct effect of not implementing the 2009
agreement and not making the funds that will be
spent on the universities reflect in the annual
budget of the country.
It will be interesting to see what ASUU comes up
with after their NEC meeting but it must be stated
that if ASUU calls off this strike it won’t be because
the 2009 agreement has been met. It is obviously
because the union has been pressurized,
intimidated and harassed by the government and a
sentimental public. Whichever way it goes, the big
question is: there was an ASUU strike in 2009, 2011,
and now 2013 just like I said on Channelstv Sunrise
Daily show the other day, will there be another
strike in 2015?

Strike: FG, ASUU meets again next week
Academic Staff Union of Universities met across
the country on Thursday to consider the offer by the
Federal Government.
The ASUU President, Dr. Nasir Faggae after a
meeting with President Goodluck Jonathan which
ended in the early hours of Tuesday had told
reporters that the union would take back an
undisclosed message to their members.
The PUNCH gathered that the striking public
universities lecturers met in the nine zones of ASUU
with branch chairmen to discuss the outcome of the
meeting with the President.
The meetings presided over by zonal coordinators
afforded them (zonal coordinators) the opportunity
to brief the branch chairmen about the offer made
by the Federal Government to revamp the public
universities across the country.
The Federal Government had at the last Tuesday
marathon meeting agreed to inject N1.1tn into the
universities over the next five years. The money,
the Federal Government promised, would be
released at the rate of N220bn annually starting
from 2014.
The Ibadan zone of ASUU held its meeting at the
Federal University Abeokuta on Thursday while that
of the North Central Zone took place at the Federal
University, Lokoja, Kogi State.
Sources at both meetings said that though the
union officials were not happy that the N400bn per
year they asked for was not granted, they were
however happy at the sincerity of purpose
displayed by President Jonathan.
Though they expressed varied opinion about the
offer, they were unanimous in commending
Jonathan for being the first Nigerian leader to meet
with the union.
When contacted, the Coordinator of the North
Central Zone, Dr. Suleiman Mohammad declined
comments on the meeting.
Mohammed, who said he was attending to some
pressing issues, said only the ASUU President could
speak on the issue.
But feelers across the zones, however, suggested
that the lecturers might have accepted the offer of
the government.
Although branch chairmen still have to call
congresses, it was gathered that the union may
have made up its mind to call off the strike after
meeting with the Federal Government again next
week.
A top official of the union said “We are happy with
the humility shown by Jonathan to personally meet
with us. This is the first time a sitting President will
meet with the union to thrash out issues. Members
were impressed with him and the strong
commitment that he displayed. But some
expressed fear that the new deal could go the way
of past agreements that were not honoured.

ASUU may call off strike
next week •Demands
slash of lawmakers’
salaries by 2014
THE about five-month-old strike embarked upon
by members of Academic Staff Union of
Universities (ASUU) may be called off next week.
It was gathered that the union would conclude
consultations with its members and may resume
class soon.
The union, it was also gathered, had asked the
Federal Government to slash across board,
salaries of National Assembly members, ministers
and other political office holders by 2014.
The demand was placed on the Federal
Government at a marathon meeting leadership of
the union held with President Goodluck Jonathan
and other key government officials at the
Presidential Villa, on Monday.
ASUU president, Dr Nasir Isa Fagge, could not
confirm this, as calls put to him on his mobile line
were unsuccessful, but ASUU source told the
Nigerian Tribune in Abuja that the demand formed
part of their deliberations on Monday to early
hours of Tuesday.
The source said ASUU had suggested this based
on the complaint by the Federal Government that
it had no money to implement all aspects of the
2009 agreement as demanded.
Nigerian Tribune, however, gathered that branch
chairmen of the ASUU had been directed to brief
their members on the offer by President Jonathan,
which is largely an addition of N20 billion to the
N200 billion already agreed upon with Vice
President Namadi Sambo to be released to
universities annually.
According to the fresh pact, the Federal
Government had agreed to release N220 billion
yearly to the public universities, beginning from
2014 till the next five years.
It was also gathered that the meeting adopted the
accord struck by the vice president with the union,
on the need to increase the N30 billion already
released for the payment of academic earned
allowance to N40 billion.
According to sources, government also agreed
that the N40 billion should be regarded only as
first instalment, and not a once-and-for-all
payment.
At the meeting, the government assured that it
would, among other things, revamp the public
universities by ensuring that all those issues that
always led to strike were dealt with once and for
all.
ASUU president had, after the meeting, told
reporters that his team would take back the
message of President Jonathan to varsity
teachers before a decision would be taken on the
next line of action.

ASUU strike: Any light at the end
of the tunnel?
on november 07, 2013 at 1:30 am in education
By DAYO ADESULU, AMAKA ABAYOMI, LAJU
ARENYEKA & IKENNA ASOMBA
Two days after a marathon 13-hour closed door
meeting between President Goodluck Jonathan and
the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU),
Vanguard Learning has gathered that there are
hopes of optimism for students to return to schools
soonest, as the union and FG seem to be on the
same page.
As there are indications that the meeting, which
started at about 2:40 p.m Monday afternoon and
went on till about 3:30 a.m Tuesday morning may
yield positive results, all things being equal,
concerted efforts made to speak with ASUU leaders
to make public their position has proved abortive,
as those contacted have kept mum.
They only obliged to make known their position
after a National Executive Council (NEC) meeting
scheduled for this week.
Though ASUU officials refused to disclose details of
the meeting, but according to close sources at the
meeting, one major agreement reached was that
Federal Government would inject N1.1 trillion into
public varsities in the next five years, which would
be released on a yearly basis at N220bn per annum
starting from 2014.
“For the outgoing year, government will only
release N100bn which has been processed. To
further show its commitment to the agreement,
government accepted that the N1.1trn be domiciled
at the Central Bank of Nigeria to be released on a
quarterly basis to the varsities,” the sources said.
Meanwhile, before now, there have been
contentious insinuations from the Federal
Government and the Senate that ASUU took
advantage of the ignorance of those delegated by
government to negotiate on its behalf with the
union in the October 2009 agreement.
University of Benin gate
Against this backdrop, one of the signatories of
government, Dr. Bolanle Olawale Babalakin (SAN),
has broken silence.
Speaking through his Special Assistant, Mr. Olawale
Ganiyu, Babalakin has clarified that there was no
point taken towards signing the agreement that was
not clear to the government.
According Babalakin, impressions that somebody
from nowhere negotiated the agreement was far
from the truth, as he argued that the calibre of
people whom the Federal Government consulted to
negotiate on their behalf were not mediocres whom
ASUU would outwit to sign the document.
Speaking to Vanguard Learning, he said among
other respected individuals, government re-
negotiation team included the likes of Deacon
Gamaliel Onosode, Chairman of the Committee,
who was at that time, the Pro-chancellor, University
of Ibadan and Chairman, Committee of Pro-
Chancellors.
Other members who signed on behalf of
government were Late Professor Musa Abdullahi,
Secretary General Committee of Vice-Chancellors
and immediate past Pro-Chancellor, University of
Jos; Professor Greg Iwu, immediate past Pro-
Chancellor, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka; Rev.
Father T.E. Uwaifo, immediate past Pro-Chancellor,
Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma; and Barrister
Emeka Nwankpa, former Pro-Chancellor, Abia State
University, Uturu.
Others were Amb. Muhammed Jumba, immediate
past Pro-Chancellor, Bayero University, Kano;
Professor Mahmood Yakubu, Executive Secretary,
Education Trust Fund (ETF), Abuja and Senator
Abdalla Wali, former Pro-Chancellor, University of
Technology, Yola, who was a member of the
committee until February 23, 2008.
Besides the Federal Government renegotiation
committee members, Babalakin also revealed that
there were 11 advisers of FG, comprising of
Professor Julius Okojie, Executive Secretary,
National Universities Commission, (NUC), Abuja;
Professor Oye Ibidapo-Obe, former Chairman,
Committee of Vice-Chancellors; Professor J.D. Amin,
immediate past Chairman, Committee of Vice-
Chancellors; Professor E.A.C. Nwanze, Chairman
Committee of Vice-Chancellors and Vice-Chancellor,
University of Benin among others.
He said to ensure that no stone was left unturned,
the Federal Government chose 12 dignitaries who
served as observers of the renegotiation and
agreement with ASUU. The observers were Mrs. V.A.
Eghobamien, representative of Federal Ministry of
Labour; Mr. S.A. Ajibola, representative of Federal
Ministry of Labour; Professor Ignatus Uvah, Deputy
Executive Secretary (University Education), NUC
and Mr P.I. Ekun, representative of Special Services
Office of the Presidency, Abuja.
Others were Mrs. Ori Okojokwu, representative of
Federal Ministry of Education; Mr. Chike Ogbechie,
National Salaries, Income and Wages Commission;
Mr. P.E. Oyong, Federal Ministry of Justice; Mrs.
Cynthia Okigbo, Budget Office of the Federation,
Federal Ministry of Finance, Abuja and Mr. I.O.
Malaolu, Office of the Secretary to the Government
of the Federation, Abuja.
On ASUU’s part, they were represented during the
signing of the agreement by Dr. Abdullahi Sule-
Kano, a former President and Professor Ukachukwu
Awuzie, the then President, alongside 26 other
members.
Meanwhile, Monday’s meeting is the first time the
President would lead government’s delegation team
for negotiation with ASUU since the commencement
of the strike four months ago.
Emerging from the meeting at the First Lady’s
conference room at the presidential villa, ASUU
President, Nasir Faggae said, “We have had lengthy
meeting with Mr. President, rubbing minds on how
best to address the problem of university education
in this country.”
“We now have a message from Mr. President that
we are going to take to our members and we are
expecting that our members will respond
appropriately to the message of Mr. President.”
On whether the lecturers are now going back to the
classroom, the ASUU President said, “that is up to
our members.”
When asked to disclose the the President ‘s
message that would be delivered to the members of
the union, Mr. Faggae said, “I cannot tell you, it’s
not for you, it is for our members.”
On whether he was impressed with the President’s
message, Mr. Faggae said, “Don’t put words into my
mouth, our members will determine that”
However, Labour Minister, Emeka Wogu told State
House Correspondents that meaningful progress
was made in the negotiations with ASUU,
expressing hope that the striking lecturers would
call off the strike.
Mr. Wogu said, “We made progress, the President of
ASUU told you that they are going back with a
message from the Federal Government back to their
members and the message is full of high
expectations and hope.”
On whether the strike would be called off, he said:
“That is why the message is full of high
expectations and hope. So our prayers is that they
come back with positive outcome. They might not
even come back to meet us, they might take
decisions there that will meet your expectations.”
“Nigerians should be patient for ASUU to finish their
meetings and come out with a message to
Nigerians.”
Responding to whether the Federal Government
made a fresh offer to the striking lecturers, the
Minister said, “the offer we made are the offer they
are taking in line with the 2009 agreement. The
issues that led to the strike are issues contained in
the 2009 agreement and we did not go beyond the
agreement.”

Strike: FG, ASUU shift grounds
on november 06, 2013 at 2:00 am in news
By VICTOR AHIUMA-YOUNG & BEN AGANDE
THERE are strong indications that the protracted
strike by Academic Staff Union of Universities,
ASUU, that has crippled academic activities for over
four months may end in the next one week,
Vanguard has gathered.
Vanguard sources at the Monday night meeting
between the Federal Government led by President
Goodluck Jonathan, the leadership of ASUU, Nigeria
Labour Congress, NLC, and Trade Union Congress of
Nigeria, TUC, said both the Federal Government and
leaders of ASUU had shifted grounds and leaders of
ASUU would meet with its organ (National
Executive Council) to brief members of the outcome
and then take necessary action.
One of the sources told Vanguard: “Both the Federal
Government and the leadership of ASUU are now on
the same page. Both parties have shifted grounds.
The leadership of ASUU will now meet with its
appropriate organ to brief its members and take the
necessary action.
President Goodluck Jonathan (left); ASUU Vice
President, Mr. Biodun Ogunyemi Onabanjo (2nd
right); Vice President Namadi Sambo (2nd left) and
ASUU President, Nasir Faggae (right) during the
meeting.
“ASUU is in the right position to inform the public
after meeting with its organ. However, I can tell you
that all things being equal, the strike should be over
in the next one week.”
The meeting between the government and the
labour leaders started at about 2:30pm on Monday
and ended at about 3:30am on Tuesday with a 15
minutes break.
Fagge, Wogu speak
National President of ASUU, Dr. Nasir Isa Fagge,
emerged from the meeting and curtly told newsmen
that his delegation was taking back a message from
President Jonathan to their members.
He declined to disclose what the message was and
when asked whether he was satisfied with the
outcome of the meeting, the ASUU leader told
journalists not to put words in his mouth.
He said: “We have had a lengthy meeting with Mr.
President, rubbing minds on how best to address the
problem of university education in this country.
“We now have a message from Mr. President that
we are going to take to our members and we are
expecting that our members will respond
appropriately to his message.”
The Minister of Labour, Chief Emeka Wogu, who
also attended the meeting, told journalists after the
meeting that certain mileage had been attained and
expressed the hope that the university lecturers
would call off the strike soon.
He said: “The President of ASUU told you that they
are going back with a message from the Federal
Government to their members and the message is
full of high expectation and hope.
“Our prayer is that they will come back with a
positive outcome. They might even not come back
to meet us. They might take decisions that will
meet your expectations.”
According to the Minister, what government brought
to the negotiation table were offers that were in
tandem with the 2009 agreements between it and
ASUU, pointing out that since the strike was based
on the 2009 agreement, the government did not go
beyond that agreement.
Roll call
President Jonathan, who led the Federal
Government’s delegation, was joined by Vice
President Namadi Sambo; Minister of Finance, Dr.
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala; Secretary to the Government
of the Federation, Anyim Pius Anyim; Supervising
Minister of Education, Nyesom Wike; and minister
of Labour, Emeka Wogu.
The ASUU delegation was led by its President, Dr.
Nasiru Fagge; past presidents such as Professor
Abdulahi Sule-Kano, Dr. Dipo Fashina and Professor
Festus Iyayi.
Other members of the delegation were Prof. Biodun
Ogunyemi, Prof. Victor Osodeke, Prof. Suleiman
Abdul, Dr. Victor Igbum and Mr. Michael
Odunmoraye.
President NLC, Abdulawahid Omar and TUC, Bobboi
Kaigama, also attended the meeting.
While exchanging pleasantries with the ASUU
delegation, President Jonathan had told them “I
hope this strike will end today. Our children have
suffered enough. We must find a solution.”

ASUU STRIKE: Why ASUU refused to call
off after meeting with Jonathan
REPORT ACCORDING TO OLUFAMOUS
The major reason why ASUU has refused to call off
its prolonged strike is the mind-boggling salaries
and the unending allowances of political office
holders in Nigeria, especially the Executive and
Legislature.
OluFamous.Com gathered that it is with this
‘trouble’ that ASUU leaders entered into a closed
door meeting in Aso Rock with President Goodluck
Jonathan on Monday. Sensing that the lecturers
were ready to speak their minds without fear, the
meeting was shifted to the First Lady Conference
Room.
Indication that the strike may be called off emerged
when Jonathan said, while shaking hands with
members of the delegation, that: “The matter must
be resolved here today. Our children must go back
to school.”
The meeting went into the early hours of Tuesday,
all in a bid to find a final resolution to the strike that
started on July 1, 2013. ASUU had the support of
NLC President, Abdulawahid Omar, in the meeting.
On his part, Jonathan was joined by VP Sambo; Dr.
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala; Anyim Pius Anyim; Nyesom
Wike and Minister of Labour, Emeka Wogu.
OluFamous.Com gathered that if ASUU should have
its way, the strike will end soon but their would be
some general reduction in the salary of political
office holders across board by 2014.
The President of ASUU is expected to meet his
members on Tuesday to take a final decision on the
strike.

ASUU Strike: Lecturers consider calling off
strike after marathon meeting with Jonathan
Premium Times - 8 hours ago
NATIONAL, NEWS
ASUU President says progress was made at the
meeting and that his team would take the
President’s message to members
After a marathon 13-hour meeting between
President Goodluck Jonathan and the Academic
Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), the union’s
leader said there was a message from the President
which would be presented to their members for
consideration.
There are however indications that the meeting,
which started at about 2:40 p.m Monday afternoon
and went on till aout 3:30 a.m Tuesday morning,
may have yielded positive results.
Monday’s meeting is the first time the president
would lead government’s delegation team for
negotiation with ASUU since the commencement of
the strike four months ago.
The presidency had taken over the negotiation with
the striking union on September 20, with Vice
President Namadi Sambo heading the government
team. He however was unable to make any
headway in the talks with the university teachers.
Emerging from the meeting at the First Lady’s
conference room at the presidential villa, ASUU
President, Nasir Faggae said, “We have had lengthy
meeting with Mr. President, rubbing minds on how
best to address the problem of university education
in this country.”
“We now have a message from Mr. President that
we are going to take to our members and we are
expecting that our members will respond
appropriately to the message of Mr. President.”
On whether the lecturers are now going back to the
classroom, the ASUU President said, “that is up to
our members.”
When asked to disclose the the President ‘s
message that would be delivered to the members of
the union, Mr. Faggae said, “I cannot tell you, it’s
not for you, it is for our members.”
On whether he was impressed with the President’s
message, Mr. Faggae said, “Don’t put words into my
mouth, our members will determine that”
However, Labour Minister, Emeka Wogu told State
House Correspondents that meaningful progress
was made in the negotiations with ASUU,
expressing hope that the striking lecturers would
call off the strike.
Mr. Wogu said, “We made progress, the President of
ASUU told you that they are going back with a
message from the Federal Government back to their
members and the message is full of high
expectations and hope.”
On whether the strike would be called off, he said:
“That is why the message is full of high
expectations and hope. So our prayers is that they
come back with positive outcome. They might not
even come back to meet us, they might take
decisions there that will meet your expectations.”
“Nigerians should be patient for ASUU to finish their
meetings and come out with a message to
Nigerians.”
Responding to whether the Federal Government
made a fresh offer to the striking lecturers, the
Minister said, “the offer we made are the offer they
are taking in line with the 2009 agreement. The
issues that led to the strike are issues contained in
the 2009 agreement and we did not go beyond the
agreement.”
About four hours into the meeting (6:30p.m.
Monday) the meeting broke for a 15-minute break.
The ASUU President led his team to their bus, a
white Toyota Bus with Lagos registration number,
BU 190 EPE, to confer amongst themselves. While
making the consultation, the ASUU leaders left the
leadership of the NLC, the TUC and government
representatives back at the hall.
The meeting resumed at about 6:50 p.m.
The ASUU President led members of the national
leadership of the academic union, including his
deputy, Professor Biodun Ogunyemi, three past
presidents of ASUU, Professor Festus Iyayi,
Professor Dipo Fashina and Professor Abdullahi
Sule-Kano.
Other members of ASUU delegation include
Professor Suleiman Abdul, Professor Victor Osodeke
and Dr. Victor Igbum.
The President of the Trade Union Congress (TUC),
Bobboi Kaigama as well as staff and other members
of the congress were also at the meeting.
On the side of government were Vice President
Sambo; Secretary to the Government of the
Federation (SGF), Anyim Pius Anyim; Chief of Staff
to the President, Mike Oghiadhomhe; Minister of
Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala; her counterpart in
the Labour and Productivity Ministry, Emeka Wogu
and the Supervising Minister of Education, Nyesom
Wike.
Also at the meeting were the Permanent Secretary
of the Federal Ministry of Education, Dr. Mac John
Nwaobiala; Executive Secretary, National
Universities Commission (NUC), Professor Julius
Okojie and Director, Tertiary Education in the
Ministry of Education, Dr. Hindatu Abdullahi.
Synopsis of the contentious 2009 agreement
The agreement included details such as the
breakdown of lecturers’ salary structure, staff loans,
pension, overtime, and moderation of
examinations.
Part of the agreement dwelt on funding of
universities where both parties agreed that each
federal university should get at least N1.5 trillion
between 2009 and 2011 while state universities,
within the same period, should receive N3.6 million
per student.
The agreement also had parts that asked the re-
negotiation committee to ensure that at least 26
percent of Nigeria’s annual budget was allocated to
education, and half of that allocation to universities.
The agreement also asked that the 2004 Joint
Admission and Matriculation Board, JAMB, Act, and
the National University Commission Act 2004, be
amended.
Text of the suggested amendment bills – including
suggestion for amendment of the Education
(National Minimum Standards and Establishment of
Institutions) Act 2004 – were provided in the
agreements.
The agreement was signed by Bolanle Babalakin,
the then chairman of Committee of Pro-Chancellors
of Federal Universities; Gamaliel Onosode,
chairman of the re-negotiation committee; and
Ukachukwu Awuzei, the then president of ASUU.
The agreement demanded a heavy financial
commitment from the government and was an
adaptation of an earlier agreement reached in 2001.
It is unclear how much of the agreement have been
implemented by the government.
However, the secretary to the federation, Pius
Anyim, after one of the recent failed negotiations,
said that most of the issues contained in the 2009
agreement, had been fully met except for the
earned allowances estimated at N92 billion.
“Some of the issues which bothered on amendment
of pensionable retirement age of academics in the
professorial cadre, consolidated peculiar allowances
(CONPUAA)- exclusively for university teaching
staff, National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS),
setting up of budget monitoring committee in all
public universities have been fully implemented,”
he disclosed.

ASUU will call off its
strike soon – Senate
President
Senate President David Mark
yesterday met with officials
of the striking Academic Staff
Union of Universities (ASUU),
with the hope of prevailing on them to
return to the classroom.
In a statement yesterday in Abuja by his
Chief Press Secretary, Paul Mumeh, the
Senate President said there were
indications that the four-month-old
industrial dispute would soon be resolved.
Mark said ASUU officials decried the
lingering crisis, which has taken its toll on
the nation.
Mark spoke in Abuja during a meeting with
ASUU leaders, led by the union’s
President, Dr Nasir Fagge.
Those at the meeting included Prof Festus
Iyayi, Dr. Dipo Fashina, Prof Abdullahi
Sule-Kano, Prof Biodun Ogunyemi, Prof
Victor Osodeke, Dr. A. B. Baffa, Prof
Suleiman Abdul, Dr. Victor Igbum and Mr.
Michael Odunmorayo.
The Senate President noted that the strike
had brought hardship to students, parents
and the lecturers.
He said: “It is time we resolve this matter
in the interest of the nation.
“This is not a case of winners or losers. It
is not a matter of ego. National interest is
at stake. We must do all that is necessary
to resolve this matter so that students and
teachers can return to classrooms.
“Nobody is happy about the strike, which
is in its fourth month. Nobody is happy
that our education system is threatened
by this ugly development. Let us end this
strike for good.”
Dr Fagge said the struggle was
necessitated by the need to improve the
infrastructure and learning environment in
universities.
He said the striking lecturers wished to
produce graduates who could be as good
as their counterparts in other parts of the
world.
The union leader stressed that the strike
did not profit the lecturers but was a
needed sacrifice for the government to do
the right thing in the Education sector.
He said: “We are not just lecturers; we are
also parents and students. So, the strike is
also affecting us negatively.”
The meeting later went into a closed-door
session for about two-and-a-half hours.
The University of Jos (UNIJOS) chapter of
the ASUU has said it is not against a
dialogue with the Federal Government.
But it said the strike lingered for over four
months because of the government’s high-
handedness.
The union stressed that its dialogue with
the government would have been fruitful,
if the government had respected the
agreement it signed with the union in 2009
as well as acted on the NEEDS
Assessment Report.
A joint statement by the UNIJOS Chairman
of the union, Dr. David Jangkam, and the
Secretary, Dr. Wamnang, said: “Anything
contrary or not based on a clear
acceptance of the framework for
implementing the 2009 agreement and
NEEDS Assessment Report will be an
imposition which will not be the solution
to the present crisis.”
The statement added that the agreements
were well documented and could not be
jettisoned under any guise.
The UNJOS-ASUU urged President
Goodluck Jonathan to follow the principles
of the agreement to resolve the face-off,
instead of applying high-handed tactics.
It hailed ASUU’s national leadership for
sticking to its guns on the strike.

BREAKING: ASUU Strike “Will End Today” –
Jonathan (UPDATED)
There have been indications that after
Monday’s meeting between President
Goodluck Jonathan and the Academic Staff
Union of Universities (ASUU), the four
month strike of the lecturers may finally
end. As of 12.30 am (Tuesday), the
meeting was still ongoing. The FG is
reported to be desperate to work out an
agreement with ASUU.
A closed-door meeting has started on Monday at
2:40 pm inside the First Lady Conference Room,
Presidential Villa, Abuja. The parties are still
negotiating, as of 12:30 am (Tuesday).
Indications that the strike which is now into its
5th month may be resolved have emerged when
the President stated, while shaking hands with
ASUU Chairman Dr. Nasir Isa Fagge:
“My president, I hope it will end today. Our
children have suffered enough. We must find a
solution.”
All those in attendance responded with a loud
“amen.”
When greeting the NLC President, Abdulwahab
Omar, Jonathan said:
“My president with you around today, there
will be no problem, our agreement is signed,
sealed and delivered.”
This is the first meeting between the lecturers
and Jonathan since the beginning of the
strike. The Presidency took over negotiations
with the striking lecturers September 19, with
the Vice-President Namadi Sambo spearheading
the FG side.
The lecturers were seen meeting among
themselves in their bus during the break that
has started at 6.30 pm. When State House
correspondents tried to talk to the lecturers,
some of them replied that they would return to
continue their discussions with the President. No
details of there discussion have been yet made
known.
Apart from Fagge and Jonathan, the meeting has
in attendance the President, Vice President,
Namadi Sambo; Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi
Okonjo-Iweala; Secretary to the Government of
the Federation, Pius Anyim; Supervising Minister
of Education, Nyesom Wike; and Minister of
Labour, Emeka Wogu among others.
The ASUU is presented by Prof. Abdulahi Sule-
Kano, Prof. Dipo Fashina and Prof. Festus
Iyayi, Prof. Suleiman Abdul, and Prof. Abdullahi
Sule-Kano. President of the Nigeria Labour
Congress, Abdulawahid Omar and that of the
Trade Union Congress, Bobboi Kaigama, are also
there.
Preparatory to the meeting, Senate President,
David Mark met with the leadership of ASUU at
the National Assembly. He regretted that the
strike had lingered for the past five months, and
called for a win-win resolution to the industrial
action. He then led the Union’s representatives
to the Presidential Villa after the meeting.
The 2009 agreement
ASUU has embarked upon an indefinite strike
July 1, 2013. The lecturers protest against an
alleged FG’s failure to honor an agreement
signed between the FG and ASUU in 2009.
Part of the agreement dwelt on funding of
universities where both parties agreed that each
federal university should get at least N1.5
trillion between 2009 and 2011 while state
universities, within the same period, should
receive N3.6 million per student.
The agreement was signed by Bolanle
Babalakin, the then chairman of Committee of
Pro-Chancellors of Federal Universities;
Gamaliel Onosode, chairman of the re-
negotiation committee; and Ukachukwu Awuzei,
the then president of ASUU.
It is still unclear, however, how much of the
agreement have been met by the FG. The
secretary to the federation, Pius Anyim, has
recently stated that most of the issues
contained in the 2009 document had been fully
met except for the earned allowances estimated
at N92 billion. i will keep you updated…

BREAKING: ASUU Strike “Will End Today” –
Jonathan (UPDATED)
There have been indications that after
Monday’s meeting between President
Goodluck Jonathan and the Academic Staff
Union of Universities (ASUU), the four
month strike of the lecturers may finally
end. As of 12.30 am (Tuesday), the
meeting was still ongoing. The FG is
reported to be desperate to work out an
agreement with ASUU.
A closed-door meeting has started on Monday at
2:40 pm inside the First Lady Conference Room,
Presidential Villa, Abuja. The parties are still
negotiating, as of 12:30 am (Tuesday).
Indications that the strike which is now into its
5th month may be resolved have emerged when
the President stated, while shaking hands with
ASUU Chairman Dr. Nasir Isa Fagge:
“My president, I hope it will end today. Our
children have suffered enough. We must find a
solution.”
All those in attendance responded with a loud
“amen.”
When greeting the NLC President, Abdulwahab
Omar, Jonathan said:
“My president with you around today, there
will be no problem, our agreement is signed,
sealed and delivered.”
This is the first meeting between the lecturers
and Jonathan since the beginning of the
strike. The Presidency took over negotiations
with the striking lecturers September 19, with
the Vice-President Namadi Sambo spearheading
the FG side.
The lecturers were seen meeting among
themselves in their bus during the break that
has started at 6.30 pm. When State House
correspondents tried to talk to the lecturers,
some of them replied that they would return to
continue their discussions with the President. No
details of there discussion have been yet made
known.
Apart from Fagge and Jonathan, the meeting has
in attendance the President, Vice President,
Namadi Sambo; Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi
Okonjo-Iweala; Secretary to the Government of
the Federation, Pius Anyim; Supervising Minister
of Education, Nyesom Wike; and Minister of
Labour, Emeka Wogu among others.
The ASUU is presented by Prof. Abdulahi Sule-
Kano, Prof. Dipo Fashina and Prof. Festus
Iyayi, Prof. Suleiman Abdul, and Prof. Abdullahi
Sule-Kano. President of the Nigeria Labour
Congress, Abdulawahid Omar and that of the
Trade Union Congress, Bobboi Kaigama, are also
there.
Preparatory to the meeting, Senate President,
David Mark met with the leadership of ASUU at
the National Assembly. He regretted that the
strike had lingered for the past five months, and
called for a win-win resolution to the industrial
action. He then led the Union’s representatives
to the Presidential Villa after the meeting.
The 2009 agreement
ASUU has embarked upon an indefinite strike
July 1, 2013. The lecturers protest against an
alleged FG’s failure to honor an agreement
signed between the FG and ASUU in 2009.
Part of the agreement dwelt on funding of
universities where both parties agreed that each
federal university should get at least N1.5
trillion between 2009 and 2011 while state
universities, within the same period, should
receive N3.6 million per student.
The agreement was signed by Bolanle
Babalakin, the then chairman of Committee of
Pro-Chancellors of Federal Universities;
Gamaliel Onosode, chairman of the re-
negotiation committee; and Ukachukwu Awuzei,
the then president of ASUU.
It is still unclear, however, how much of the
agreement have been met by the FG. The
secretary to the federation, Pius Anyim, has
recently stated that most of the issues
contained in the 2009 document had been fully
met except for the earned allowances estimated
at N92 billion. i will keep you updated…

ASUU strike: Lecturers list
their expectations ahead
of Monday’s meeting with
Jonathan
The Academic Staff Union of Universities
(ASUU), are hopeful ahead of their meeting
with President Goodluck Jonathan on Monday
and expressed optimism that the four-month
old strike, will be called off soon.
The union say they expect the meeting to be
mutually beneficial, as they seek to find a
lasting solution to the context of the
implementation of the 2009 agreement, the
2012 MOU and the recommendations of the
Needs Assessment Report. However, ASUU
warned that any proposal by the federal
government, would be based on a clear
acceptance of a framework for the
implementation of the 2009 agreement and
added that any attempt to impose decisions
will not work.
In a statement by its
Chairperson from Michael
Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike,
Abia state , Dr. Uzochukwu Onyebinama,
ASUU asked President Jonathan “to be guided
by the principle of honouring agreements in
the interest of justice and industrial harmony
in the country.
“As the National leadership of our union, the
Academic Staff Union of Universities meet
with his Excellency, President Goodluck
Jonathan, tomorrow 4th November 2013
[tomorrow], we hope that the meeting will be
a dialogue that will lead to a mutually
acceptable fair and far reaching solution
within the context of the implementation of
the 2009 agreement, the 2012 MOU and the
recommendations of the Needs Assessment
Report.
“Any proposal by government should be
based on a clear acceptance of a framework
for the implementation of the 2009
agreement. Any imposition will not present a
solution to the current crisis.
“We therefore call on the President and
Commander- in- chief of the armed forces of
the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Dr. Goodluck
Jonathan to be guided by the principle of
honouring agreements in the interest of
justice and industrial harmony in the
country”.

ASUU strike: Wike shuns
journalists after secret
meeting with Union,
stakeholders
In a continued effort to resolve the ongoing
face-off between the Academic Staff Union of
Universities, ASUU, and the federal
government, an emergency meeting was on
Tuesday held between the Supervising
Minister of Education, Mr. Nyesom Wike, and
the Union.
It was reported that nothing tangible was
gathered regarding the outcome of the
meeting that lasted for only one hour.
Attempts to speak with the ASUU President,
Dr. Nasir Fagge and the Minister failed, as
both of them refused to disclose the outcome
of the meeting to journalists.
The ASUU Head only responded after series
of questions that, “I am not in a position to
talk.”
Apart from the Minister
and the ASUU chairman,
the Executive Secretary of the National
Universities Commission, Prof. Julius Okojie;
the Vice-Chancellor of the University of
Ibadan, Prof. Isaac Adewole and a few other
national officers of the union were equally at
the meeting.
Relatively, Vice-President Namadi Sambo had
a brief meeting with stakeholders in the
nation’s education sector on Tuesday.
No details of the meeting’s outcome were
made available to journalist as none of the
members agreed to speak to the press.
The stakeholders were led to the Presidential
Villa by Wike and other members of the
delegation, including Okojie and Adewole.
Some members had earlier told journalists
who were waiting outside the venue that the
Minister would address them, but Wike did
not respond to questions when he came out
of the Vice President’s office.
ASUU has remained on strike for nearly four
months, in protest of the Federal
government’s failure to implement the 2009
agreement it signed with the Nigerian
government. It has said that until hundred per
cent of the said agreement is implemented,
the nation’s universities would remain shut.

‘ASUU Strike ‘ll Soon Be
Called Off’
The Four months old industrial action by the
Academic Staff Union of Universities ASUU
may soon be called off.
This follows indications from recent closed
door meeting held yesterday between the
supervising minister and minister of state for
education, Barr Nyesom Wike and a team of
the universities striking lecturers led by the
union president, Dr Isa Fagge.
Members of the academic union emerged
from the meeting with visible smiles and
clearly stated revival of relationship between
the union and the federal government.
However, the details of the meeting were not
disclosed as members of ASUU were
escorted by the supervising minister of
education, to ensure that the members of the
union did not address the press.
Earlier this week, the minister also met with
vice chancellors of public owned universities
in a closed door meeting, and details of the
meeting was not equally disclosed.

ASUU Strike: Again, FG
asks lecturers to end
strike
in Main Home Page Slider, News
The Federal Government on
Tuesday reiterated its call on
striking university lecturers to
return to work in the interest
of students and prevent further damage to
the education system.
The Minister of Information, Labaran Maku,
made the call during the Ministry’s
monthly press briefing in Abuja.
He claimed that government had
conceded to most of the demands made
by the Academic Staff Union of
Universities (ASUU) and wondered why
the union would not budge in the interest
of the nation.
He said government’s commitment to
resolve the crisis was further
demonstrated by its representation by
Vice President Namadi Sambo in the
dialogue.
Mr. Maku explained that the strike was not
for salaries but for allowances, as salaries
had been increased.
According to the minister, “salaries have
been increased by 54.3% which is half of
our monthly income but they still insist on
their 100 billon allowance.
“Government offered N30 billion but after
a meeting with the vice president,
government promised another N10 billion,
making it N40 billion.
“Government has also promised N100
billion from Education Trust Fund and the
N40 billon allowance have already been
paid in many universities, yet they are still
under lock and key”, he added.
The minister also stated that no
government had cooperated with ASUU
the way this present government was
doing.
“We are doing infrastructure in the
universities. For example, we have 38 new
buildings in the University of Benin.
“No one would want our teachers to suffer
because I have worked as a teacher, same
as the President, but we cannot give all
that they are asking.
“No nation can move forward if we all
expect government to give 100 per cent
time and effort to our problems. We run an
economy that needs attention in all
phases’’, he said.
He, however, sympathised with students
now at home and called on parents and
Nigerians in general to appeal to ASUU to
go back to the classrooms.
Mr. Maku said: “it is not in the interest of
the country for the strike to continue.”
The university lecturers have been on
strike since July 1 and have demanded the
full implementation of the 2009
agreement the union had with the federal
government.

Atiku, 215 others sign petition to end ASUU
strike
Two hundred and sixteen Nigerians at home and in
the Diaspora have signed an online petition asking
the Federal Government and the Academic Staff
Union of Universities to end the industrial dispute
which has kept public universities shut for four
months.
The petition launched on change.org, a go-to site
for web protests, is asking President Goodluck
Jonathan and the National President of ASUU, Dr.
Nassir Faggae, to reach an “amicable consensus.”
In the petition entitled, “Mr. President and the
Academic Staff Union of Universities: Please End
the ASUU Strike now,” the petitioners said the
Presidency should stop playing politics with
education of the Nigerian youth.
The petition read in part, “Since the ASUU strike
began, it has been over half a semester, a lot in the
life of students waiting at home, not knowing when
the strike will be over. The future of Nigeria is at
stake. Stop playing politics with education.
“It is urgent we send a message that it is long past
time for the FG and ASUU to reach consensus and
get students back to school by ending this strike.”
A majority of non-students who appended their
signature to the petition noted that they joined the
online protest with a view to crying out to ASUU
and the FG to consider poor students whose parents
cannot afford the luxury of sending them overseas
to study like the sons and daughters of political
office holders.
Former Vice-President, Atiku Abubakar, joined other
students and concerned Nigerians clamouring for a
speedy end to the crisis rocking the higher
education sector.
Atiku, who featured the link to the petition signing
website on his Twitter handle, wrote, “We should
never play politics with education. Our future
depends on it. It is time for the FG and ASUU to
reach a consensus and get students back to school
by ending this strike.”
An Abuja-based post-graduate student in one of the
public universities in the country, Mubarak Jubrin,
expressing his dissatisfaction, wrote: “I am stuck
with a semester to finish my Master’s programme.
The FG should be doing everything possible to
rescue the one institution left that is working
towards producing better human beings who will
shape the future of our dear country.”
Noting that prolonged shutting down of public
universities is a dangerous omen for the society
and development of the nation, a Kaduna-based
student, Tarik Abubakar, also said Nigerians
students were being denied their rights to
education.
“Students in other countries are enjoying their
rights to education. I am pleading with the FG and
ASUU to settle their issue and call off the strike,”
Abubakar stated.
A Nigerian student studying at the University of
Cape Town, South Africa, Godspower Onwudiwe,
lamented that the industrial action paints a bad
picture of Nigeria on the international scene.
Onwudiwe stated, I feel so sorry for my beloved
country because these incessant strikes are a
barrier to her general development. Also, as a
student in the Diaspora, it paints a very pitiful and
shameful picture on our international identity.
“I cannot wait to not only see this strike end but
also the end of future strikes to the detriment of the
future of this generation and our country at large.”
Jemima Gana, who was moved to sign the petition
because she believes that the status quo needs to
change as the prosperous future of Nigeria depends
on quality education, which is being threatened by
the strike.
Gana, who according to the information she
provided on the site, is based in Lagos, said
Nigerian students need a stable learning
environment devoid of strikes for them to be able
to compete globally.
“It is so important to me because it is high time the
FG took the value of education seriously and in high
regard. Students in Nigeria need a stable
environment to acquire knowledge and graduate on
time in order to contribute their skills to the growth
and development of this great nation,” she wrote.

ASUU strike: Media reports
orchestrated; FG added no dime, no
improvement – Union
Contrary to media reports that the Federal
Government had made an appreciable improvement
by augmenting the previous N100b to the lecturers
to N200b or N150b, ASUU leadership has in strong
term debunk such claims as being sponsored by
government to blackmail the union, stating that the
government had never made in further
improvement on the strike discussion.
New report according daily Post has it that, the
media reports were sponsored to force the union
end the strike.
READ THE REPORT ACCORDING DAILY POST BELOW
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU)
has accused the Federal Government of sponsoring
media campaign to force it to end the ongoing
industrial action.
According to the union, its indefinite strike which
started on July 2, still stands, irrespective of the
move by government to discredit its leadership.
Chairman of ASUU, University of Abuja chapter,
Clement Chup, had on Sunday in an interview with
Daily Independent, also denied a purported meeting
at the State House, Abuja, with Vice President
Namadi Sambo, where it was claimed that
government further shifted grounds on the demands
of the Union.
An online news medium had reported that there was
an appreciable progress in the ongoing negotiations
between ASUU and the Vice President, particularly
on the controversial earned allowances for the
striking lecturers.
In the report, government was alleged to have
further shifted ground on the demands made by the
Union, by agreeing to add N10 billion to the N30
billion initially provided for the settlement of earned
allowances, making it N40 billion.
It was also reported that government had shored up
the N100 billion meant for infrastructure to N150
billion with a pledge to periodically inject more
funds into the system in line with the Needs
Implementation Committee chaired by Benue State
Governor, Gabriel Suswan.
Chup in his reaction, said “I read the mischievous
report online myself, but I am telling you
authoritatively that there was no such meeting.
“Government is only trying to use propaganda and
cheap blackmail to make us call off this strike, but
it will not work.
“Our strike is still very much on course, in fact,
ASUU will soon release a position paper on these
developments, we are used to this kind of blackmail
from government,” Chup said.
On his part, Chairman of the Ambrose Alli University
chapter of ASUU, Fred Esumeh, attributed the strike
to failed leadership on the part of government,
saying over 53 letters urging government to
implement the 2009 agreement were transmitted
prior to the strike.
“As I keep saying, this strike is a product of failed
leadership on the part of government; this is
because we had series of dialogue to reach an
agreement.
“An agreement reached since 2009 that has not
been implemented up till now, obviously it is a
product of failed leadership, before this time that
we commenced strike, there have been over 53
letters, not to talk of several meetings with the
House and Senate committees on education to
intervene.
“I do not think ASUU is loosing public sympathy,
because what we see in our electronic media and
perhaps few print media is sponsored protest.
“Like the one organised by the market women, that
one is laughable, you could see that it is
government sponsored.
“Then of course, the guy that parades himself as
NANS President, Yinka Gbadebo, a diploma student
in OAU, who was rusticated from Ekiti State
University.
“A diploma student cannot even contest to be an
SUG president and to be a NANS president, you
must be from SUG presidents all over the
federation, so we know these people are sponsored
by government,” Esumeh said.

ASUU Strike: Okonjo Iweala denies
being a clog to peace
Nigeria’s minister of finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-
Iweala has denied being a clog in efforts to reach a
compromise between the Federal Government and
the striking members of the Academic Staff Union
of Universities(ASUU).
A statement by the minister made reference to
what she called abusive flyers and pamphlets
allegedly being circulated in some parts of the
country, and in mosques, which purportedly malign
and demonise her as ‘being unsympathetic to the
plight of students and parents.’
She claimed the pamphlets also peddled lies that
she has insisted on a “take-it-or-leave-it approach”
in the negotiations with ASUU.
•Okonjo-Iweala

, Finance Minister
“Nothing could be further from the truth,” said the
minister in the statement signed by her special
adviser, Paul Nwabuikwu.
“Contrary to some recent media reports, the Federal
government has not adopted a take-it-or-leave-it
approach in its negotiations with ASUU. Rather, the
approach is focused on positive engagement and
achieving sustainable solutions to the challenges
facing higher education in the country. That is why
President Goodluck Jonathan recently appealed to
ASUU to respond to government’s positive steps by
calling off its strike in the interest of suffering
students and parents,”, the minister said.
The positive steps she spoke about included the
N100billion the government has agreed to vote for
infrastructure and the N30billion to meet the
allowances of ASUU members. But ASUU has
rejected the amount as too small.
While the minister alluded to government making
further concessions to ASUU members, she was not
specific about figures and what has been agreed
upon.
“This is the first time, in years of negotiating with
government, that significant sums of money have
been put on the table for ASUU and universities on
this particular set of issues.”, Okonjo-Iweala stated
and even went further to share the credit for the
gesture, along with President Goodluck Jonathan,
who she said was working hard to “seek practical
and sustainable solutions to the challenges facing
higher education in Nigeria”.
The statement showed that Dr. Okonjo-Iweala was
very concerned about her image in the academic
community and strove to put the matter in the right
perspective.
“Dr Okonjo-Iweala is the daughter of two retired
professors and her father is presently a member of
ASUU’s Board of Trustees and has been one for a
long time. She speaks with her father everyday on
the issue so how can she be insensitive to issues
concerning the sad state of tertiary education in the
country? She understands and sympathizes with the
plight of both students and lecturers. She wants our
children back in school as soon as possible.
Remember she is a mother and two of her young
relatives are sitting at home due to the strike.”
Her statement concluded by joining President
Goodluck Jonathan in appealing to ASUU to end the
strike.
“Against this background, ASUU elements who want
the strike to continue should have a heart and
rethink their current take-it-or-leave-it approach to
negotiation. Government has demonstrated its
commitment to improving the university system.
And it is even ready to do much more going
forward. ASUU should listen to the voice of reason
and the yearnings of Nigerians on this issue.”
In the leaflet or pamphlet Dr. Okonjo-Iweala said
was in wide circulation, ASUU canvasses for more
funding to education in the country and graphically
shows that Nigeria votes the lowest fund to
education, in contrast to many African countries.
In 2012, according to the pamphlet, total allocation
by Nigeria to all tiers of education was $1.96 billion
and $2.69 billion this year, which represents just
one per cent of the nation’s GDP of $262.2 billion.
ASUU argues in the pamphlet that education
deserves “better and sincere attention from the
rulers of the country”

ASUU Strike: The truth
about government’s
position – Ngozi Okonjo-
Iweala
THE TRUTH ABOUT GOVERNMENT’S
POSITION ON ASUU STRIKE
*OKONJO-IWEALA IS NOT THE ISSUE
Contrary to some recent media reports,
the Federal government has not adopted a
take-it-or-leave-it approach in its
negotiations with ASUU. Rather, the
approach is focused on positive
engagement and achieving sustainable
solutions to the challenges facing higher
education in the country. That is why
President Goodluck Jonathan recently
appealed to ASUU to respond to
government’s positive steps by calling off
its strike in the interest of suffering
students and parents.
Despite this, for several days now, some
elements in ASUU have been distributing
pamphlets and flyers with abusive and
inflammatory messages against the
Coordinating Minister for the Economy and
Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-
Iweala in mosques and other places. This
is taking academic unionism to a new low
and infusing it with unnecessary politics. I
am sure majority of ASUU members are
not in support of this.
These messages are directed at using
falsehood to demonize the Minister as
callous and unsympathetic to the plight of
students and parents. The major lie being
peddled in the pamphlets and flyers is that
Dr Okonjo-Iweala has insisted on a “take-
it-or-leave-it approach” in the negotiations
with ASUU. Nothing could be further from
the truth.
Dr Okonjo-Iweala is the daughter of two
retired professors and her father is
presently a member of ASUU’s Board of
Trustees and has been one for a long time.
She speaks with her father everyday on
the issue so how can be insensitive to
issues concerning the sad state of tertiary
education in the country? She understands
and sympathizes with the plight of both
students and lecturers. She wants our
children back in school as soon as
possible. Remember she is a mother and
two of her young relatives are sitting at
home due to the strike.
This is why government is working hard,
under the leadership of the President, to
seek practical and sustainable solutions to
the challenges facing higher education in
Nigeria. The President has made available
N100 billion a year in the first instance to
repair hostels, laboratories and
classrooms and other facilities. An offer
has also been made to ASUU of N30 billion
towards their earned allowances. In fact,
negotiations have even gone further than
this. This is the first time, in years of
negotiating with government, that
significant sums of money have been put
on the table for ASUU and universities on
this particular set of issues. The
Coordinating Minister is fully part of this.
Against this background, ASUU elements
who want the strike to continue should
have a heart and rethink their current
take-it-or-leave-it approach to negotiation.
Government has demonstrated its
commitment to improving the university
system. And it is even ready to do much
more going forward. ASUU should listen to
the voice of reason and the yearnings of
Nigerians on this issue.
Paul C Nwabuikwu
Special Adviser to the Coordinating
Minister and Minister of Finance

ASUU Strike No Longer in Students’ Interest,
Says Youth Council
The National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) has
said the ongoing strike embarked upon by the
Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) is no
longer in the interest of Nigerian students.
National President of the youth organisation,
Abdulahi Abdulmajeed, who made the assertion in
Lagos at the weekend, said neither ASUU nor
government would lose but the Nigerian youths
who are always at the receiving end.
He lamented that the strike, which has exceeded
100 days, was already taking an alarming
dimension with huge consequences on the helpless
youths whose future is being jeopardised as the
blame game continues.
Speaking further, he emphasised ASUU did not
have any justification to continue with the strike
since negotiations can continue while the students
return to classroom in pursuit of their educational
careers.
He noted that ASUU was fast losing credibility in
the eyes of Nigerians adding that the lecturers are
putting premium on personnel entitlements and
welfare issues above the issues of sectoral
repositioning and improvements of infrastructure in
the education sector going by the method they
have adopted.
“ASUU may have a point, it is also a fact that they
are fast losing credibility in the eyes of several
Nigerians because in the present trade dispute, we
are beginning to feel that ASUU is putting premium
on personnel entitlements and welfare issues
above the issues of sectoral repositioning and
improvements of infrastructure in the educational
sector going by the method they have adopted.
“Nigerians are beginning to have their tolerance
margin over stretched because in spite of the
validity of their demands, they are adopting a very
un-dynamic approach which fails to weigh the
consequences of their actions on the students they
claim to be fighting.
“As youth leaders, we do not intend to take sides in
this lingering face off, but it is imperative that we
state clearly the interest of young people who are
at the receiving end of this whole saga even though
there may be no statistical measure of the
cumulative damage done to the system in the
course of the current ASUU strike that is now in its
fourth month.
“It is evident that education which undoubtedly is
the bedrock of any society, is becoming
increasingly bastardised and denigrated due to the
actions and inactions of both parties. Incessant
industrial actions have combined with inadequate
attention to destroy almost beyond repairs, our
institutions of higher learning thereby further
worsening the already decayed process of human
capital development in our country,” Abdulmajeed
explained.
He said the council is not in any way opposing to
the demands of the university lecturers, but
insisted that shutting down universities in the
country for such a long is unacceptable to the
Nigerian youths.

Herbalists back ASUU as students
kick
Students have called on the Academic Staff Union
of Universities not to betray them in the on-going
strike. They said they would not like a situation
when the strike would be called off without
achieving anything.
This came as herbalists in Oyo State pledged their
support for ASUU.
According to the President of the herbalists in the
state, Dr. Arunoyemi Asanlaye, “we are in support
of ASUU on the on-going strike”.
The students in large number at a town hall
meeting, tagged, Save Public Education Campaign,
which was organised by ASUU, UI chapter at the
Trenchard Hall, University of Ibadan Monday
showed their displeasure at the seeming docility
and indifference of the Nigeria Labour Congress
calling on the labour union to embark on solidarity
strike to force government to respond to ASUU
demands.
Dr. Olusegun Ajiboye, Chairman, ASUU UI chapter,
said the union would use any method to actualize
their demands clarified that the struggle was not
about the salaries of lecturers but the funding of
education in the country.
Ajiboye said, “We are using so many methods. We
cannot tell you when to move to Bodija Market.
That is part of our strategies.
Instead of begging ASUU, the government should
declare a state of emergency in the education
sector”.
Responding to the call by the students, Mr. Bashir
Olanrewaju, NLC Chairman in Oyo State, said, “By
Wednesday, we will come out with a more proactive
stance on the strike. Though, students have called
on us to go on strike, we will not go on strike now.
We will only mediate. If an affiliate has a problem,
joining it in strike will collapse the whole system.
We have never been docile about the incident”.
Prof. Remi Raji, lecturer at the Faculty of Arts,
University of Ibadan, said, ”Government should look
at the NEEDS Assessment report. It is almost a year
now that the 169 recommendations had been made
and nothing has been done.
Salary of lecturers is just one of the nine demands
of ASUU”.

Breaking deadlock on ASUU strike
NO one single sentence can succinctly capture the
rot that has progressively emasculated Nigeria’s
education sector. The dysfunction is exemplified in
the current strike by the Academic Staff Union of
Universities, which started on July 1 over funding
dispute. The industrial action has grounded
activities in federal and state universities, sending
undergraduates out of school for almost four
months. For a leader who wants to leave a mark,
the prolonged ASUU strike should be an opportunity
for President Goodluck Jonathan to jump-start a
serious discussion about the future of higher
education in Nigeria. Since the government and
teachers have failed to agree, an emergency has to
be declared so that the problem can be solved
holistically.
There are two main issues arising from the Federal
Government’s non-implementation of the 2009
agreement between the lecturers and the
government that forced them (lecturers) to embark
on their “total strike.” The first is the non-payment
of “earned allowances”, or overtime pay. ASUU has
a N92 billion figure for this. Out of this, the
government, claiming that it would go bankrupt if it
had to meet all of ASUU’s demands, has provided
N30 billion. ASUU however insists that the money
has to be fully paid before lecturers can return to
their teaching posts. Should there be this kind of
shameful hubbub in a nation that earned about N11
trillion in revenues in 2012? It shouldn’t if the two
parties are focused.
Two, ASUU, seeing the degradation of hostel
accommodation, libraries, laboratories and research
in Nigerian universities, wants the government to
fund infrastructure development with N400 billion.
According to Nyesom Wike, the minister
supervising the Education Ministry, the government
has provided N100 billion, and has added another
N100 billion sourced from the Tertiary Education
Trust Fund. This leaves a balance of N200 billion,
which, again, ASUU insists must be given before it
calls off its strike.
But it is a fatal flaw for the lecturers to think that
meeting the demands of ASUU will end the rot in
the education system, and restore the sector to the
halcyon days. No, it won’t. In fact, paying off the
lecturers will only paper the deep cracks bedevilling
the sector. This is not in the interest of the nation,
and is certainly not good for the students and
parents who have been calling on the government
to end their ordeal. Meeting the lecturers’ demands
will only cement the tarnished era producing half-
baked, poorly-educated graduates who are not fit
for the labour market.
The rot in the university system is deep. To be
successful in their research and teaching missions,
universities need to be able to take their own
decisions, which only organisational, financial,
staffing and academic autonomy can guarantee.
But Nigerian public universities are run like an
extension of a government agency. ASUU says
circulars are emanating in most cases from the
National Universities Commission, interfering in the
day-to-day running of the universities. While
governing councils of universities are dissolved at a
drop of a hat, vice chancellors are reportedly
summoned by SMS to come to Abuja.
Since 1999, when Nigeria returned to civil rule,
lecturers have been on strike for a total of “30
months out of 156 months, or 20 per cent of the
total time in the past 13 years,” according to
TheScoop, an online publication. “This is an
equivalent of six semesters or three academic
sessions,” the publication added. The worst of the
strikes lasted for six months between 2003 and
2004 when lecturers demanded that professors had
to retire at the age of 70. But more than this, our
whole education structure is in a shambles. From
primary to secondary and tertiary levels, education
in Nigeria has collapsed. Standards in universities
are at historic lows, yet, private universities
unjustifiably issue first class degrees to their
products.
The problem is that there is so much corruption in
the system. Universities not only mismanage the
little funds being given to them, they also engage
in unwholesome practices such as extortion and
examination fraud. With wanton abandonment,
they regularly admit more intakes than their
carrying capacity, with a school like the University
of Ibadan, which can carry only 12,000 students,
having 40,000.
How to resolve the problem? Our universities face
a grim choice. First, declare a moratorium in the
establishment of new public universities and review
the guidelines for private ones. The present number
of 74 federal and state universities is unwieldy and
the Federal Government is fooling itself that it can
fund its own share. As a matter of urgency, Abuja
has to stop the 12 new federal universities it
established with a grant of N1 billion each earlier
this year. This is a political joke carried too far as it
will worsen the funding crisis. As a nation, we have
to come to the painful reality that it is time to
declare an emergency in education that will lead to
a total overhaul of the system. Infusions of more
public money will not clear the rot. Ghana has gone
this path before so it should not be seen as a bad
proposition.
Academic excellence is the hallmark of university
education, but it does not come cheap. Our
universities’ overdependence on public funding is
not neat enough. State universities have to be
separated from federal ones in the new system
since their sources of income are not the same.
While the Federal Government collects 52.68 per
cent of public income, and states 26.72 per cent, it
is unjust to subject the workers on the two
platforms to the same reward system.
It should be noted that universities are not simply
vocational institutions churning out graduates to
meet the needs of the marketplace, and a degree is
not merely a meal ticket. A well-educated citizenry
is a benefit both to the individual and to the state.
Our public universities need huge funds to repair
decades of neglect. Also, it is time to introduce
tuition for university education, as painful as it
seems. University education is expensive and those
who desire it must be ready to pay, since the
government cannot fund it wholly. The United
Kingdom may raise its university tuition benchmark
from £9,000 to £16,000 per session; undergraduates
pay heavily in the United States though a level of
subsidy and scholarships are provided by the state.
If we must put the knowledge economy at the heart
of the nation’s development, the deception that
goes with funding of our university education must
end. We must set the compass in the right
direction. While parasitic bureaucracies like the
Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board should be
scrapped, the NUC, a creation of the military that
has over-centralised the system, has to be
overhauled.

Breaking deadlock on ASUU strike
NO one single sentence can succinctly capture the
rot that has progressively emasculated Nigeria’s
education sector. The dysfunction is exemplified in
the current strike by the Academic Staff Union of
Universities, which started on July 1 over funding
dispute. The industrial action has grounded
activities in federal and state universities, sending
undergraduates out of school for almost four
months. For a leader who wants to leave a mark,
the prolonged ASUU strike should be an opportunity
for President Goodluck Jonathan to jump-start a
serious discussion about the future of higher
education in Nigeria. Since the government and
teachers have failed to agree, an emergency has to
be declared so that the problem can be solved
holistically.
There are two main issues arising from the Federal
Government’s non-implementation of the 2009
agreement between the lecturers and the
government that forced them (lecturers) to embark
on their “total strike.” The first is the non-payment
of “earned allowances”, or overtime pay. ASUU has
a N92 billion figure for this. Out of this, the
government, claiming that it would go bankrupt if it
had to meet all of ASUU’s demands, has provided
N30 billion. ASUU however insists that the money
has to be fully paid before lecturers can return to
their teaching posts. Should there be this kind of
shameful hubbub in a nation that earned about N11
trillion in revenues in 2012? It shouldn’t if the two
parties are focused.
Two, ASUU, seeing the degradation of hostel
accommodation, libraries, laboratories and research
in Nigerian universities, wants the government to
fund infrastructure development with N400 billion.
According to Nyesom Wike, the minister
supervising the Education Ministry, the government
has provided N100 billion, and has added another
N100 billion sourced from the Tertiary Education
Trust Fund. This leaves a balance of N200 billion,
which, again, ASUU insists must be given before it
calls off its strike.
But it is a fatal flaw for the lecturers to think that
meeting the demands of ASUU will end the rot in
the education system, and restore the sector to the
halcyon days. No, it won’t. In fact, paying off the
lecturers will only paper the deep cracks bedevilling
the sector. This is not in the interest of the nation,
and is certainly not good for the students and
parents who have been calling on the government
to end their ordeal. Meeting the lecturers’ demands
will only cement the tarnished era producing half-
baked, poorly-educated graduates who are not fit
for the labour market.
The rot in the university system is deep. To be
successful in their research and teaching missions,
universities need to be able to take their own
decisions, which only organisational, financial,
staffing and academic autonomy can guarantee.
But Nigerian public universities are run like an
extension of a government agency. ASUU says
circulars are emanating in most cases from the
National Universities Commission, interfering in the
day-to-day running of the universities. While
governing councils of universities are dissolved at a
drop of a hat, vice chancellors are reportedly
summoned by SMS to come to Abuja.
Since 1999, when Nigeria returned to civil rule,
lecturers have been on strike for a total of “30
months out of 156 months, or 20 per cent of the
total time in the past 13 years,” according to
TheScoop, an online publication. “This is an
equivalent of six semesters or three academic
sessions,” the publication added. The worst of the
strikes lasted for six months between 2003 and
2004 when lecturers demanded that professors had
to retire at the age of 70. But more than this, our
whole education structure is in a shambles. From
primary to secondary and tertiary levels, education
in Nigeria has collapsed. Standards in universities
are at historic lows, yet, private universities
unjustifiably issue first class degrees to their
products.
The problem is that there is so much corruption in
the system. Universities not only mismanage the
little funds being given to them, they also engage
in unwholesome practices such as extortion and
examination fraud. With wanton abandonment,
they regularly admit more intakes than their
carrying capacity, with a school like the University
of Ibadan, which can carry only 12,000 students,
having 40,000.
How to resolve the problem? Our universities face
a grim choice. First, declare a moratorium in the
establishment of new public universities and review
the guidelines for private ones. The present number
of 74 federal and state universities is unwieldy and
the Federal Government is fooling itself that it can
fund its own share. As a matter of urgency, Abuja
has to stop the 12 new federal universities it
established with a grant of N1 billion each earlier
this year. This is a political joke carried too far as it
will worsen the funding crisis. As a nation, we have
to come to the painful reality that it is time to
declare an emergency in education that will lead to
a total overhaul of the system. Infusions of more
public money will not clear the rot. Ghana has gone
this path before so it should not be seen as a bad
proposition.
Academic excellence is the hallmark of university
education, but it does not come cheap. Our
universities’ overdependence on public funding is
not neat enough. State universities have to be
separated from federal ones in the new system
since their sources of income are not the same.
While the Federal Government collects 52.68 per
cent of public income, and states 26.72 per cent, it
is unjust to subject the workers on the two
platforms to the same reward system.
It should be noted that universities are not simply
vocational institutions churning out graduates to
meet the needs of the marketplace, and a degree is
not merely a meal ticket. A well-educated citizenry
is a benefit both to the individual and to the state.
Our public universities need huge funds to repair
decades of neglect. Also, it is time to introduce
tuition for university education, as painful as it
seems. University education is expensive and those
who desire it must be ready to pay, since the
government cannot fund it wholly. The United
Kingdom may raise its university tuition benchmark
from £9,000 to £16,000 per session; undergraduates
pay heavily in the United States though a level of
subsidy and scholarships are provided by the state.
If we must put the knowledge economy at the heart
of the nation’s development, the deception that
goes with funding of our university education must
end. We must set the compass in the right
direction. While parasitic bureaucracies like the
Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board should be
scrapped, the NUC, a creation of the military that
has over-centralised the system, has to be
overhauled.

President Goodluck Jonathan
has appealed to the leadership
of the Academics Staff Union of
Universities (ASUU), to tamper
anger with justice.
The president made this while
speaking during the first
convocation ceremony of the Afe
Babalola University in Ado Ekiti,
EKiti state, south-west Nigeria.
Jonathan, who made the appeal for
the sake of the Nigerian students,
urged the leadership of ASUU to
allow students go back to school as
the federal government will
continue to look into their demands.
“I once again appeal to the entire
membership of ASUUto pause and
ponder on the adverse effect of
their action on the future of the
vibrant youths of this great nation.
“The collective destiny of tens of
thousands of tomorrow’s leaders
should not be held hostage to
vagaries of labour disputes.
“So, let me use this unique
opportunity that I am interfacing
with our future leaders, our
students, to plead with ASUU
members.
“If it is a genuine strike, keeping
students out of classrooms for
almost four months, by that they
have demonstrated to everybody
that they have a case.
“And if the strike is motivated by
some other interests, they have
also achieved that by keeping
students out of schools for more
than a semester,” he said.
President Jonathan further
emphasised that the freedom of
association and the right of workers
to go on strike should not be abused
and used to the detriment of the
nation.
Mr. Afe Babalola (SAN), said in his
short address noted that the
government cannot do it alone, he
urged all stakeholders to contribute
their own quota to the development
of education in the country.
Babalola said the institution which
was built some three and half years
ago is worth over 60 billion private
investments.
He added that the school which has
over 4000 students from 36 states
of the federation and FCT, is reputed
to be one of the fastest growing
private universities in Africa and the
14th best among all public and
private universities in Nigeria.
Babalola said he decided to invest
in the education sector because of
his firm believe that government
cannot fund the sector alone adding
that the best universities in the
world such as Oxford and Havard
are privately owned.
ASUU had embarked on an
indefinite strike that has paralysed
academic activities in universities
across the country.

ASUU strike: UNIABUJA
student attempts suicide,
says it was a better option
The ongoing strike of the Academic Staff
Union of Universities, ASUU took a different
turn on Saturday at the Dutse-Alhaji area of
Abuja when a female student of the
University of Abuja made to hang herself in
protest of the nearly four months old strike.
The female student identified as Jane Okoro
had already hanged herself, but fell off the
ceiling while struggling, apparently because
the rope she used was not strong enough.
Jane had sent her two younger brothers on an
errand, just a way of sending them out of the
house to be able to carry out the abominable
act, but one of the brothers returned after 15
minutes and saw her on the floor with a rope
tied round her neck while another rope
dangled from the ceiling fan. The 15 year old
boy raised the alarm, thinking that his sister
was dead, attracting neighbours and other
onlookers into their compound. However, it
was discovered by those who got there first,
that Jane was alive as it was only a suicide
attempt.
The boy, who was identified as Andrew had
told our correspondent that the sister was
behaving so strange throughout that morning.
He said, ” She was to go to the market with
my mum, but said she was not feeling too
well. While we were at home with her, she
refused to talk. She was always on her
Blackberry. Shortly after she had her bath,
she sent us to First-Gate (market), but I left
some money I wanted to use to buy my
personal stuff at home, so upon return, I saw
her on the floor of our parlour. I even thought
she was dead, so I shouted.”
Meanwhile, the mother
who returned from the
market immediately after the news got to her
had told our correspondent in tears that, her
daughter must have attempted to commit
suicide because of the ongoing ASUU strike.
She said, I will ask her questions on why she
wanted to do this to us. She has been
complaining to me about this ASUU strike.
She said, at her age, she should have been
done with school, and begin to take care of
the children and I. Her father is late. I know
that only this week, she had complained to
me up to 6 times on how frustrating this
strike has been. I know other things may
have contributed, but ASUU strike may have
contributed the most; but for whatever
reason, it was devilish for my daughter to
have attempted suicide.” She said.
Asked what she was going to do about the
situation, she said ” I will take her to my
Pastor this evening. She needs prayers. We
need somebody to talk to her. God will do the
miracle for me. I didn’t do anything to
anybody. I must not suffer for nothing. She is
already in her third year in school. What
would I have done if this had happened?”
Attempt to speak with Jane failed as she
could not respond to questions from our
correspondent. The only statement she
muttered was ” It was a better option”.
The mother had later asked our
correspondent to leave her to rest. She said ”
she will talk to you after we see our Pastor.
She will give the testimony herself.”
However, a female friend of Jane who had
pleaded not to be mentioned showed our
correspondent her recent conversation with
Jane on her Blackberry. She said ” my last
chat with her was on this very ASUU strike.
See what she posted, ” I tire for these ASUU
peopleoooo” She showed our correspondent
the chat.

ASUU to meet over strike, says not
under pressure
on october 18, 2013 at 7:02 pm in news
BY JOHNBOSCO AGBAKWURU, Abuja
THE National Strike Coordinating Committee, NSCC,
comprising of principal officers and Zonal
Coordinators of Academic Staff Union of
Universities, ASUU will be meeting Saturday to take
stock of the ongoing strike embarked by the union
that is entering the fourth months.
Meantime, ASUU said that it was not under any
pressure to call-off the strike despite what it called
sponsored protests and rallies against the union,
stressing that before the union decided to embark
on the strike, it holistically took objective
assessment of the situation.
One of the branch Chairmen of ASUU and member
of NSCC who spoke exclusively to Saturday
Vanguard on the condition of anonymity said that
the meeting will take place in Ondo state and that
there would be a situation report including the
meeting representatives of ASUU had with the
Federal government last week’s Friday.
He said,”We are meeting tomorrow, National Strike
Coordinating Committee. Tomorrow is arrival. Our
Principal officers and Zonal Coordinators met with
government last week Friday, one week today, so
we want to discus the outcome of the meeting, after
that we will now meet.”
Commenting on the plethora of protests by different
groups over the strike which could be mounting
pressure on the union to call off the strike, he said
that “There is no pressure on us. We look at things
objectively and remember that even me as I am
talking we cannot suspend the strike.
“We have to get inputs from the branches that is
why our strike is always very tight, because before
we declared the strike, we have collected inputs
from all branch officers in the universities in
Nigeria, we collated it, discussed it extensively for
two days before we declared the strike.
“And if there is any offer made by government, we
have to look at it, that is the principal officers ten of
them in number, the zonal coordinators who take
over functions of NEC during the strike, so, they will
look at what government has offered, brief us the
branch chair persons then it is at this point we will
now know whether to convene an emergency NEC
to look at it holistically.
“By the time they are briefing us, they will also ask
us to brief our committee members and take the
issue to the congress, it is not a one man show, all
these ones they are talking about politics it is not
true, the process right from the least of all the
lecturers to the highest that is the professor from
each branch, we collate all their responses, it is only
when they advice us to suspend that we suspend, it
is not just one man show.”
He explained that during strike situation, the
National Strike Coordinating Committee comprising
of principal officers and zonal coordinators always
take over the functions of NEC, adding, “every
single week, the zonal coordinators will take the
information to the various branches who will now
take the information to congress, collating
information from congress, the branch chairman will
take it back to the zonal coordinator, the zonal
coordinator takes it back to NSCC, the reason is that
NEC has the larger component, we are many.”
He said that the reason behind allowing the smaller
number of officers to meet during strike situation
was to cut cost.
“Why NEC cannot meet during the strike is because
of cost, we are more in number. In NEC we have
over 100 people, but NSCC will be between 10 and
20, so it is manageable, we have a channel of
communication.”
All attempts made to call the National President of
ASUU, Dr. Nasir Fagge failed as he neither picked
calls put across his GSM line nor replied the text
message sent to him.

joedollar007: I saw my name on d jamb merit list,,and i never came 4 d post utme..abeg wil my name come out on the school list..

See u just need to pray so hard cos have seen pple dat deir names were on jamb list and it was not found on the skul merit list... Just pray sha