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ASUU strike: FG assures of speedy resolution

⁠Our Reporter⁠ ⁠



From JULIANA TAIWO-OBALONYE, Abuja

The Federal Government has admitted its concern about the distortion in the school calendar, assuring on the speedy resolution to end the ongoing strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU). The government said it has engaged the lecturers in ‘serious negotiations’.

It is also worried about the fall-out of the lingering strike and its effect on the students, hence, the urgency to end the industrial action as quickly as possible.

Minister of Information Labaran Maku stated the government’s resolve at the end of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting chaired by President Goodluck Jonathan in Abuja yesterday, urging parents and the affected students to bear with government and show more understanding as efforts are being made to resolve the issues very soon.

Maku said the Federal Government had indeed been worried since the onset of the strike, particularly as there are always social costs incurred by disruption of academic calendar.

“The Federal Government has been far more worried than you think, concerning the strike in tertiary institutions, because of the disruption of the school calendar and so, government is concerned and very worried and since the onset of the strike, government has been negotiating with ASUU through the Ministries of Labour and Productivity and Education.

“As at today, we know that negotiations are going on and it is our expectation that this strike will not get more protracted and that an understanding will be reached soon enough to enable our students return to school. Government is very worried and concerned every time the school calendar is disrupted, it has its cost to the nation, particularly the idle time our children spend at home can lead to a lot of social difficulties.

“We don’t want school calendars to be disrupted and a lot of series of discussions have been going on and we believe we should record some progress soon enough for these schools to re-open and the Ministers of Labour and Education will be giving briefings on the progress of these negotiations and I know that it has never ceased.

“So, we are appealing to our people, particularly parents and children of this nation, to bear with us, to show more understanding and we pray that this type of strike will not re-occur, because the public school system suffers a lot of damage with the perennial strikes. The universities have been relatively stable since the advent of this administration. The strikes that we inherited, we have tried to resolve them, and if you notice in the last two years, there has not been a lot of strikes until this unfortunate one and I believe we will overcome it and in the end, both parties will appreciate the need to keep the school calendar stable for the progress of our country. So, government is working hard to ensure we reach an agreement to resolve this problem, so that our schools can re-open”.

Meanwhile, FEC has approved a contract of N2.99 billion for the rehabilitation/construction of the Calabar-Ugep section of the Katsina-Ala/Ogoja/Ugep/Calabar Road.

The earlier section of the road which is already 80 per cent complete, was awarded for N4.6 billion, thus bringing the total contract sum for the entire road to N7.5 billion

Minister of State for Works, Bashir Yuguda, explained that the contractor, Piccolo Brunelli, which handled the first phase, was asked to continue with the extension since it was already on site and had done a very good job.

Yuguda recalled that “the first phase of the project aimed at addressing the heavily distressed sections of the road while other sections not captured in the original contract scope of works would be addressed when funds became available.

“This is to ensure that government and the public get the full benefits of the investment made on the roads in terms of improvement of the level of service,” he siad.

The council also considered a memo to provide a template for economic analysis of projects before they are included in the budget for appropriation. According to Maku, this template will also include environmental assessment and will ensure that henceforth, projects must follow the masterplan of the Federal Government’s Transformation Agenda.

Although there is existing assessment, FEC intends the new template to constitute a scientific and thorough analysis of projects, and decided to continue further deliberations on the memo at subsequent meetings of the council.

A FEC committee was also set up to further study the synergy among several factors that come into play in the Public-Private-Partnership involved in power/electricity projects in the country.

ASUU strike: FG assures of speedy resolution

⁠Our Reporter⁠ ⁠August 1, 2013⁠ ⁠2 Comments »⁠



From JULIANA TAIWO-OBALONYE, Abuja

The Federal Government has admitted its concern about the distortion in the school calendar, assuring on the speedy resolution to end the ongoing strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU). The government said it has engaged the lecturers in ‘serious negotiations’.

It is also worried about the fall-out of the lingering strike and its effect on the students, hence, the urgency to end the industrial action as quickly as possible.

Minister of Information Labaran Maku stated the government’s resolve at the end of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting chaired by President Goodluck Jonathan in Abuja yesterday, urging parents and the affected students to bear with government and show more understanding as efforts are being made to resolve the issues very soon.

Maku said the Federal Government had indeed been worried since the onset of the strike, particularly as there are always social costs incurred by disruption of academic calendar.

“The Federal Government has been far more worried than you think, concerning the strike in tertiary institutions, because of the disruption of the school calendar and so, government is concerned and very worried and since the onset of the strike, government has been negotiating with ASUU through the Ministries of Labour and Productivity and Education.

“As at today, we know that negotiations are going on and it is our expectation that this strike will not get more protracted and that an understanding will be reached soon enough to enable our students return to school. Government is very worried and concerned every time the school calendar is disrupted, it has its cost to the nation, particularly the idle time our children spend at home can lead to a lot of social difficulties.

“We don’t want school calendars to be disrupted and a lot of series of discussions have been going on and we believe we should record some progress soon enough for these schools to re-open and the Ministers of Labour and Education will be giving briefings on the progress of these negotiations and I know that it has never ceased.

“So, we are appealing to our people, particularly parents and children of this nation, to bear with us, to show more understanding and we pray that this type of strike will not re-occur, because the public school system suffers a lot of damage with the perennial strikes. The universities have been relatively stable since the advent of this administration. The strikes that we inherited, we have tried to resolve them, and if you notice in the last two years, there has not been a lot of strikes until this unfortunate one and I believe we will overcome it and in the end, both parties will appreciate the need to keep the school calendar stable for the progress of our country. So, government is working hard to ensure we reach an agreement to resolve this problem, so that our schools can re-open”.

Meanwhile, FEC has approved a contract of N2.99 billion for the rehabilitation/construction of the Calabar-Ugep section of the Katsina-Ala/Ogoja/Ugep/Calabar Road.

The earlier section of the road which is already 80 per cent complete, was awarded for N4.6 billion, thus bringing the total contract sum for the entire road to N7.5 billion

Minister of State for Works, Bashir Yuguda, explained that the contractor, Piccolo Brunelli, which handled the first phase, was asked to continue with the extension since it was already on site and had done a very good job.

Yuguda recalled that “the first phase of the project aimed at addressing the heavily distressed sections of the road while other sections not captured in the original contract scope of works would be addressed when funds became available.

“This is to ensure that government and the public get the full benefits of the investment made on the roads in terms of improvement of the level of service,” he siad.

The council also considered a memo to provide a template for economic analysis of projects before they are included in the budget for appropriation. According to Maku, this template will also include environmental assessment and will ensure that henceforth, projects must follow the masterplan of the Federal Government’s Transformation Agenda.

Although there is existing assessment, FEC intends the new template to constitute a scientific and thorough analysis of projects, and decided to continue further deliberations on the memo at subsequent meetings of the council.

A FEC committee was also set up to further study the synergy among several factors that come into play in the Public-Private-Partnership involved in power/electricity projects in the country

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Bear With Us; FG Appeals To Students, Parents Over ASUU Strike



on August 1, 2013



The Federal Government has appealed to students over the ongoing strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities saying that it is committed to the speedy resolution of the crisis for the sake of Nigerian students.

Speaking to State House correspondents after Wednesday’s Federal Executive Council meeting, Minister of Information, Labaran Maku said the government was committed to “serious negotiations” with the university lecturers.

He therefore appealed to the students and parents to bear with government and show more understanding as efforts are being made to find a lasting solution to the problem at hand.

“The federal government has been far more worried than you think concerning the strike in tertiary institutions, because of the disruption of the school calendar and so government is concerned and very worried and since the onset of the strike government has been negotiating with ASUU through the Ministry of Labour and Productivity and the Ministry of Education.

“As at today we know that this negotiations are going on and it is our expectation that this strike will not get more protracted and that an understanding will be reached soon enough to enable our students return back to school. Government is very worried and concerned every time the school calendar is disrupted, it has its cost to the nation, particularly the idle time our children spend at home can lead to a lot of social difficulties.

“We don’t want school calendars to be disrupted and a lot of series of discussions have been going on and we believe we should record some progress soon enough for these schools to open and the Minister of Labour and education will be giving quarter briefing on the progress of these negotiation and I know that it has never cease.

“So we are appealing to our people particularly parents and children of this nation to bear with us, to show more understanding and we pray that this type of strike will not re-occur, because the public school system suffers a lot of damage with the perennial strikes. The universities have been relatively stable since the advent of this Administration. The outraged strikes that we inherited we have tried to resolve them, and if you notice in the last two years there has not been a lot of strikes until this unfortunate one and I believe we will overcome it and in the end both parties will appreciate the need to keep the school calendar stable for the progress of our country. So government is working hard to ensure we reach an agreement to resolve this problem so that or schools can re-open” he said.

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Lists.

ASUU Strike May End Next Thursday





The latest and Update on the ongoing ASUU Strike is that the strike may end soon- next Thursday to be precise.

Here is the details as reported by InformationNG:

The meeting between the Federal Government and the striking Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, may have yielded results, as there are now indications the on-going strike might be called off next Thursday.

Governor of Benue State, Mr Gabriel Suswam who dropped this hint Friday said ASUU and the Federal Government had reached agreements on all the contentious issues that led to the industrial action except two.

Suswam who was appointed as Chairman of the Needs Assessment Implementation Committee of the Federal Government said after next Thursday’s deliberations between his Committee and the various agencies of government funding tertiary education, all the contentious issues would likely be resolved.

Suswam told journalists in Abuja after attending a meeting between the Federal Government’s delegation and ASUU that agreements had been reached by both parties on all issues save two.

“We reached agreements on all issues except two. These two issues are those of earned allowances of lecturers and intervention for the federal universities. These are the only issues that are still outstanding.”
The Benue Governor further said he believed that by next week after his Committee would have arrived at an agreement on all the issues, ASUU would call off the strike.

“The SGF would meet with the leadership of ASUU on the issue of earned allowances by next Monday.
“Then my committee which is dealing with the issue of the needs assessment of the universities would meet again next Thursday and take another look at all the infrastructural deficits which the federal universities are facing.

“If you go to our universities, you would agree that they are facing infrastructural deficits and that is why my committee would meet with all the funding agencies next Thursday for the purpose of prioritizing all the projects that need to be executed. We are going to invite all the agencies that are involved in the funding of the universities including the Central Bank of Nigeria.”

Suswam said agreement has been reached on retirement age for university lecturers, which has now been increased from 65 to 70 years; the constitution of the governing councils of the universities which has already been done by the Government; the setting up of a pension administrator and the issue of persuading companies operating in the country to set up research centers in the universities.

“As far as I am concerned, if the issues concerning intervention and earned allowances are resolved next week, then the strike could be called off,” he said.

Present at the meeting were Secretary to the Government of the Federation Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, Minister of Labour, Hon. Emeka Wogu, Minister of Education, Prof. Ruqayatu Rufai and President of Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Dr Nasir Fagge, among others.

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) on Thursday insisted that it would not open fresh negotiation with the Federal Government on the agreement reached with the latter on the management of Nigerian universities in 2009.

Ademola Aremu, the National Treasurer of the Union, who gave the hint on Thursday, urged members to stockpile food stuff in preparation for a sustained battle with the government over the controversial pact.

ASUU has been on an indefinite strike for over three weeks over government's refusal to honour the 2009 agreement and a 2012 Memorandum of Understanding between both parties.

The Minister of Labour and Productivity, Emeka Wogu, had said on Monday that the Goodluck Jonathan administration could not implement the agreement as it is. He said the government would renegotiate the agreement with the lecturers.

But, Mr. Aremu, speaking at a symposium held at the University College Hospital, Ibadan, said the strike will continue until the government "comes to term with reality."

The official, a former University of Ibadan chairman of ASUU, accused the government of deceit and insincerity. He described as ruse, the claim by the government that it lacked sufficient money to implement the agreement, saying government only needs to stop the frivolity it spends on.

"Nigeria votes the least budget to education, while siphoning huge sums to irrelevant projects that do not encourage research and development," he said.

Themed: "Education, Research and Development in Nigeria," Thursday's symposium was organised by the University of Ibadan Branch of ASUU at Paul Hendrickse Hall of the College of Medicine, University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan.

Discussants at the symposium included Mr. Aremu; Segun Ajiboye, incumbent ASUU Chairman of the university; Millicent Obajimi, former Chairman, Nigerian Medical Association; Abass Abdulsalaam; and Femi Afolabi.

"We believe that many of the Nigerian leaders wanted public education dead, reason they have been establishing well equipped private universities at the expense of the poor masses of this country.

"But, we will not allow them the way they did to public primary and secondary education", the university teachers noted.

ASUU Strike: Union Accuses FG Of Insincerity And Infidelity!! The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) at the weekend accused the Federal Government of insincerity in the implementation of the agreement it reached with the union.
The union said the government has not shown interest in addressing the problems of the Education sector.
It also said the government was feigning ignorance about the union’s demands.
The National Convener, ASUU Committee on Human Rights, Dr Sola Olorunyomi, spoke on a Splash FM programme, “Voices”, monitored in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.
He said ASUU’s leaders, who met with representatives of the Federal Government, were shocked when the government feigned ignorance about the strike and its agreement.
The academic explained that it was only when the representatives were shown the government’s signature on the document that the reality dawned on them.
Olorunyomi said: “We are resolute this time. We are prepared to go hungry.You can’t believe that the people we met first feigned ignorance about the agreement. It was not until our team brought out the memorandum of agreement and then some of them saw their signatures. It was a drama of sorts. But you can only have that in Nigeria.”

ASUU strike will not affect preparations for Nigeria University Games - Don: Professor Ademola Onifade of the Lagos State University (LASU) says the ongoing strike by the Academic Staff Union of University's (ASUU) will not adversely affect athletes' preparation for the Nigeria

Universities Game (NUGA).

The Games will be hosted by the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife from October 2 to13.

Mr. Onifade, a Professor of Sports and Chairman, LASU Sports Council, told the News Agency of Nigeria in Lagos that in spite of the persisting strike, the athletes could still be preparing for the Games.

He explained that the strike was only directed at stopping the lecturers from teaching and holding meetings and not crippling other activities in the institutions.

"ASUU strike does not in any way affect student sports. I mean ASUU strike is for ASUU, that is, we the staff are not expected to teach. We are not expected to attend meetings, so the strike is basically for academic staff, not for students, so it doesn't affect students in anyway.

"And again, you must appreciate the fact that in all Nigerian universities, there is a sport office and academic staff are not the ones running the sport offices. There are professional sports people who are in the sports offices and they take care of the student sports, so the strike doesn't affect it in any way.

"Even if an academic staff is engaged as a part time coach, it doesn't, because ASUU is not against that per say, since we are not teaching. We are not attending academic meetings. No, it does not affect it (NUGA preparations) in anyway," he said.

The chairman said that the strike could be a blessing in disguise as affected athletes could use the period to prepare for the Games.

Varsity Students Appeal To FG To Settle With ASUU; Students of Bayero University, Kano (BUK), have appealed to the Federal Government to settle its differences with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) amicably and fast, to enable them to return to school.

Some of the students told a News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) correspondent on Thursday in Kano that they were not happy about the development, describing it as “worrisome” and “disturbing.”

Mr Hamisu Balarabe, a 400 level economics student, said he was eager to graduate from the university when he heard about the latest ASUU strike.

He said: “the strike has shattered my dreams because it means I will have to stay longer than I anticipated.

“Honestly, the strikes by ASUU have disrupted our educational pursuit because we cannot plan our lives anymore. It is very disturbing for us, especially the prospective graduating students.”

Mariya Aminu, a 300 level mass communication student, noted students whose parents lived outside Kano were even more affected.

She said such students had to spend extra money to travel back home and to school again when they re-open.

A new student, Bilyaminu Abdulkadir, who said that the strike has demoralised him, added that “I don’t even know what to do because the strike came even before I settled down in school.”

He urged the Federal Government to negotiate with ASUU and find a lasting solution to the problem for the benefit of the upcoming generation.

In his reaction, Alhaji Aminu Bello, a parent, also urged the Federal Government to negotiate with the union in order to settle the lingering government/ASUU discrepancies.

He said it was high time the government settled with the union “so that our children can settle down and concentrate oin their studies.

“A situation whereby our children keep jumping in and out of school because of strike is not good for the country, more especially when the crime situation is increasing.

“These children need to be engaged and when they are not in school, what do you expect them to do? These are young adults and adults who must channel their energies into something meaningful.

“The Federal Government and ASUU must negotiate and find a lasting solution to this perennial problem, if we all want this country to progress. These are our leaders of tomorrow.”

ASUU embarked on an indefinite strike on July 1, to compel the Federal Government to fulfil its pledges to it, as declared by the National President, Mr Isa Fagge.

The Federal Government, yesterday, begged the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, to return to classrooms, as the union insisted that the strike would continue unless agreements between it and government were implemented.

The strike which began last week, entered its second week yesterday, even as the union and Education Ministry officials appear before the National Assembly today.

Minister of Education, Professor Ruqquayat Rufa'i, who made the appeal, said the union should call off its strike in the interest of students.

Rufa'i said: "We are going to meet with ASUU and all those that are concerned at the Senate today. We are going to appear before the Senate and the House Committee on Education and we are pleading with ASUU to go back to classroom and let our children go back to school."

Speaking to Vanguard, ASUU President, Dr Isa Nasir Fagge Isa, however, said the strike would continue until the Federal Government faithfully implemented agreement in the Memorandum of Understanding, MoU reached between both parties.

He said: "On whether the strike will continue or be called off is dependent on government's decision. If the government does what is right, I assure you that we will call off the strike immediately, we will look at what government has and we will review the situation.

"We don't have to inform anybody that we are taking an action when it becomes clear to us that what we are doing cannot make any headway. We looked at all the options available before embarking on the strike.

"I must remind you that a strike is a fundamental right of a worker, if it becomes clear to a worker that the dialogue with his employer is becoming the dialogue of the deaf and dump, the worker has the right to withdraw his services, that is a fundamental right, it is enshrined in the ILO conventions and it is part of the right of Nigerian citizens.

"We have realised that each time we reached an agreement with the government, government finds it difficult to implement the provisions of the agreement and that is the reason our members advised that we just go back to the trenches.

"You should ask the government, out of the nine provisions of the Memorandum of Understanding we had how many have been implemented?

"Out of the provisions, government had been able to implement two which is the "review of the retirement age of academics on the professional cadre from 65 to 70 years and the reinstatement of the governing council of universities".

"It will be recalled that government without notice dissolved the governing board of universities, and we took it up that, the government action will not favour the university system.

"Of all the problems identified in the Need Assessment report, how many have been implemented? Our universities are still the way they are, we don't want to continue deceiving ourselves. We expect that dialogue should produce results, we have been dialoguing for one and half years and we are tired of doing that, we want actions", he insisted.

"What we need to do is to ensure that we implement the recommendations of that report, but sadly, we have had an agreement with the government in 2009 on four issues which include: Funding, University autonomy and Academic freedom and then conditions of service and other matters but four years after, the provisions of the agreement have not been implemented.

Strike: ASUU Hails Legislators For Intervention, Looks Forward To Positive Outcome.
the Minister of Education, Prof. Ruqqayatu Rufai, appealed to the striking lecturers to reconsider their stand and go back to work, pending the resolution of issues involved.

The Senate Committee on Education also called ASUU for a meeting on Tuesday, towards a resolution of the issues--but it could not hold.

Fagge told NAN:``I sincerely want to appreciate the efforts of the National Assembly in its role at ensuring that it gets the executive arm of government to do what it is supposed to do on this issue.

Our meeting with the Senate Committee on Education that was slated for Tuesday July 9, could not hold because of some pressing issues that needed urgent attention.

The meeting has now been moved to Monday, July 15, when we are expected to deliberate on several issues that are related to the general development of the sector''.

Fagge said he looked forward to the meeting with the legislators and hoped it would help in resolving the issues which led to the strike.

I am confident that the National Assembly will seize this opportunity in prevailing on the executive to do what they are supposed to do so.

``I hope that at the end of the deliberation, we would have cause to be happy and get ourselves back to work.

Breaking News: Senate, ASUU, FG Meeting on Strike Issues Deadlocked

15.07.2013, 21:14  Local

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The negotiations among the Senate, the Federal government and the leadership of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, over the ongoing industrial action embarked by universities lecturers ended without parties reaching any compromise.

The meeting which was at the instance of the chairman, Senate Committee on Education, Senator Uche Chukwumerije, PDP Abia North, was called to pacify the striking lecturers with a bid to finding a common ground. However, a source at the meeting revealed that all efforts to push for a call off of the strike proved abortive as members of ASUU stood their grounds.

The source also said that for well over seven hours, Chukwumerije was literarily on his kneels pleading with the lecturers to consider the plights of the students and call off the strike, but ASUU members refused to shift ground.

The meeting had in attendance, Secretary to the Government of the Federation, SGF, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, Minister of Education, Professor Ruquayyatu Rufai; Executive Secretary, National Universities Commission, NUC, Professor Julius Okojie and members of the Senate Committee on Education, among others.

BREAKING: ASUU called-off strike reports Untrue – ASUU

Following the indefinite strike embarked by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), last Monday, the union, Sunday, disclosed that it will not suspend the industrial action, unless the Federal Government accedes to the agreement it reached with it in 2009. This is even as the union debunked reports on some social and online media that it has suspended its one-week old strike.



ASUU President – Fagge

ASUU cartoon
Speaking with Vanguard, ASUU Chairman, University of Lagos (UNILAG), Chapter, Dr. Karo Ogbinaka said: “The strike is still ongoing. We have not suspended or called-off the strike. Perhaps, before we do that, a National Executive Council (NEC) meeting must be held, then, the resolutions of the meeting will be made known to all chapters of the union,” adding, “The indefinite and total strike will continue, except government meets our demands.”

Meanwhile, FG through its Ministry of Education led by Prof. Ruqayyatu Rufain will Monday, meet with stakeholders in the industry, which included Vice Chancellors of Federal universities and their Governing Councils, together with interested Vice Chancellors of State and Private universities.

However, at the time of filing this report, full details of agenda for the meeting was not made known. It would recalled that the union had last Monday, called out its members on an indefinite industrial action over what it termed government’s failure to honour the Academic Earned Allowance (AEA) which formed a component of the 2009 agreement the government signed with the union.

ASUU president explains why strike will continue. The National President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, Dr. Nasir Issa-Fagee, has said that universities in the country will continue with the on-going industrial action despite its effect on the students and their parents as well as on the academic calendar.

According to him, the Nigerian Universities will not continue to churn out unemployable graduates because of lack of training facilities in the institutions.

He acknowledged that the strike affect both parents and students, but noted that there was the need for sacrifice by all the stakeholders in order to ensure that Nigeria graduates compete with their peers in other parts of the world.

The ASUU boss observed that the agreement which the union entered into with the federal government in 2009 was due for review in June 20th, 2012, regretting that many years after the agreement, it had not been substantially implemented.

“The academic calendar had already been affected. For the fact that students were graduating, they do not even perform well when they get into the labour market.

“I don’t really know what is our priority. Is it that we just continue churning out graduates with certificates who may not perform because they have not been trained adequately as a result of lack of training facilities, research, laboratories, workshops and adequately equipped libraries?

“This is an agreement that was signed in 2009 and it should have been reviewed in 20th June, last year. I hope we are now in July, 2013, which is one year after, yet we have not substantially implemented that agreement let alone, commencing the process of review.

“So I think that is the key issue. If government is serious, it would have substantially implemented the agreement before June 20 and then commence the process of review of that agreement”, he stated.

The Minister of Education, Professor Ruqqayatu Rufai on Tuesday exonerated the federal government from blame over the ongoing strike by university lecturers saying the government has made an offer to the lecturers but was yet to receive any response from their union.

The lecturers, members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), started a nationwide strike on Tuesday to press home their demands for the implementation of the 2009 agreements with the Federal Government.

The minister, who was answering questions from journalists in Abuja, did not give any hint on the details of the offer made by the government to the union, but maintained that government was still expecting ASUU’s response.

“They are our colleagues, we meet with them, we discuss with them. There is an offer from government. We expected to hear from them and up till now we are expecting to hear from them,” she said.

Also commenting on the issue, the Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission, Professor Julius Okojie said that ASUU was supposed to write the government in respect of the offer made to them during a meeting held between them about three weeks ago.

Mr. Okojie said that ASUU had informed representatives of the Federal Government that it would get its response after its National Executive Meeting (NEC).

“We have no official report from them. They should write to us. We have been meeting regularly. We even met on Sunday.

“About three weeks ago, there was an offer made to them by the government. They said that they were going to their NEC, what we expected from them is that they should have come to us and told us what was the result.

“As far as I am concerned, if they are on strike we don’t know. They should write to us,” he said.

Strike grounds universities

Meanwhile, academic activities at the University of Lagos were grounded on Tuesday in compliance with the lecturers strike.

The ASUU President, Isa Faggae, said that the action followed the inability of the Federal Government to implement some of the issues contained in a 2009 agreement it had with the union. He told newsmen in Lagos that the government had also reneged on the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) it entered into with the union in December 2011.

A correspondent, who was at the University of Lagos to monitor the effect of the strike, reports that there was total compliance as lecturers shunned classes. Few students were seen loitering the campus and discussing the development in small groups.

One of the lecturers who spoke on condition of anonymity said that the strike was comprehensive and total, adding that there was no going back until their demands were met.

“I think I am happy with the development. If that is the only language that government can listen to, then so be it.

“As you can see, we have all complied with the no work directive. We are going to have a congress today, just to strengthen our resolve and remain resilient on the issue.

“And I can assure there will be no academic activity on campus until the issue is resolved,” he said.

Tobi Oguntuashe, a year one student of the Faculty of Environmental Science, said that the strike was unfortunate and coming at the wrong time.

She said that with examinations likely to come up by the first week in August, the strike might lead to a postponement.

“I really do not like what is happening now; I feel government should be more serious and committed to the plight of these lecturers because aside from asking for their rights, they are equally critical to nation building.

“With this strike that has taken effect and for the fact that is total and indefinite, a lot of us might lose focus and also destabilised,” Ms. Oguntuashe said.

Another student, Adeoye Olatiboye, a second year student of the Faculty of Law, also expressed concern over the timing of the strike.

He said that the government should always keep its own side of a bargain and that the strike will take a great toll on academic activities lined up for the semester, especially examination.

He said that with such development on ground, the final year students were going to be the most affected as no one could determine how long it would last.

“I feel government should listen to the lecturers so that they can go back to work.

“These people have been going about their jobs happily for a long time even while waiting for government to do their bid.

“We must learn to show commitment to issues that concern education in this country if truly we intend to be ranked among the world’s top 20 economies,” he said.

At the Lagos State University, Ojo, some students were seen having lectures early in the day but the ASUU chapter later circulated notices creating awareness on the strike after which lecturers complied.

The ASUU chapter of the institution said that it was at the forefront in compliance with the strike.

The Chairman, LASU chapter of the union, Adekunle Idris, said in an interview that the strike was a collective decision and no university was expected to object to the directives of the national body.

“We are resolute to go on with the strike as long as it lasts because we know that the government has a tough skin but we are also ready for them,” he said.

He said that beyond issues involved in the national strike, the LASU chapter had other grievances with the state government over some agreements that had not been implemented.

Mr. Oluwatoki urged opinion leaders and traditional leaders to intervene for the sake of the students, to save decadence in the education sector.

Also the lecturers union at the Tai Solarin University of Education (TASUED), Ijebu-Ode, told its members to stay away from work in support of the national union.

The chapter, after its congress, said the lecturers should stay away from work pending further directive from the national body.

TASUED-ASUU Chairman, Adebayo Akinsanya said the lecturers decided to join the strike due to Federal Government’s failure to adhere to the agreement it had with the union in 2009.

He said that the union was also against the continued politicisation of the educational sector.

Mr. Akinsanya said that the only way to call off the strike was for government to fully implement the 2009 FG-ASUU agreement.

“How can government go into an agreement with the union and four years after, government is still foot-dragging over the issue, not wanting to fulfil the agreement.’’

“For the sake of the innocent students, the Federal Government should implement this agreement so that the strike can be called off, ” Mr. Akinsanya said.

Meanwhile, the National Parent Teacher Association of Nigeria (NAPTAN), has urged the Federal Government to accede to the demands of the striking university lecturers.

Deolu Ogunbajo, the National Publicity Secretary, NAPTAN, said that it was unfortunate that the government was reneging on an agreement it willingly entered into with the union.

Mr. Ogunbajo said that what the lecturers were asking for was not “new and out of place’’ and that it was only logical for government to be more responsive and sincere enough to meet such demands.

“It is unfortunate to have this same issue recurring too often. It is worrisome to see how government is always dragging this same issue with ASUU to the point of allowing them to embark on strike. They must look into the issue and do something urgently in that direction.

“Government must also realise that what the lecturers are agitating for are not just fresh demands; they are things that had been signed years ago.

“We therefore want to plead government on behalf of the striking lecturers, to urgently intervene and do the right thing so that this strike will not take a dimension that we all might live to regret,” he pleaded.

The Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics and the Senior Staff Association of Polytechnics have also been on strike since April.

According to Fagge, the Federal Government, in 2009 made a law to pay each lecturers N12,500 per month
as earn allowance which it never did since 2009.

Two months into a nationwide strike by polytechnic lecturers, Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, Monday, began a nationwide strike over alleged Federal Government’s refusal to implement the agreement between it and the union over unpaid entitlements, its National President, Dr. Nasir Fagge, has said.

Polytechnics lecturers are also on strike due to alleged non-implementation of agreements and lack of infrastructure in their institutions.

According to Fagge, Federal Government, in 2009 signed an agreement to pay each lecturer N12,500 per month as EARN allowance, which it has not done since then.

He said: “The allowances include excess work load, high carriage of student per lecturer, responsibility allowance, ranging from administrative responsibility borne by lectures for example, as Head of Department, Deans of Faculties, Examination Officers, Course Advisers and Supervision of thesis.

“The highest any lecture gets from this allowance is N12,500 per month. The truth is that since 2009 no lecturer has been paid any allowance apart from his salary.”

Fagge explained that when the non-payment of allowance was brought to the notice of Federal Government, it said that it forgot to include it in the budget and promised to make amends in subsequent but never did.

Before the commencement of strike, Fagge noted that the union held several meetings with officials of the Federal Government on the issue but regretted that government did not take the union seriously.

He said: “We went ahead to go on a warning strike and they never did anything to avert the industrial action.

“We had series of interaction with the Federal Government at the national level, but to the dismay of ASUU, the government recently came with a new position that they can not pay more than 50 percent of the agreed amount

“It had earlier been reduced to 80 percent by the union.

“Between December and January 2011, the union suspended its industrial action over ASUU/FG agreements. Within the period, the union had series of meetings with Federal Government.

“When the strike was suspended two and half years ago, there was an MoU signed with the Federal Government.

“In the MoU, the Federal Government agreed to inject funds to uplift the infrastructure in the universities which it never did.

Academic activities may be paralyzed on university campuses nationwide as the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has declared indefinite strike action to compel the Federal Government to implement the agreement reached with the union in October 2009.

Indications to this emerged at the University of Ibadan when the academic staff of the university received a text message which reads “Good morning, this is to officially inform you that ASUU has declared a total, comprehensive and indefinite STRIKE from Monday, July 1, 2013. Await further briefing.

ASUU UI.”

Immediately the text was received, academic staff who had been expectant, praised the decision of the National Executive Council (NEC) on the decision to proceed on strike to improve the condition of the nation’s universities and improve quality of service delivery.

The NEC of ASUU, which concluded its meeting at the Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago Iwoye, was said to have considered the state of implementation at the universities and concluded that the Federal Government had not been faithful in implementing the agreements substantially.

Although, ASUU is to officially address a world press conference today, sources at the NEC said the decision to proceed on strike included failure of the Federal Government to meet the funding requirements for revitalisation of Nigerian universities; progressive increase of annual budgetary allocation to education to 26 per cent between 2009 and 2020, earned allowances, and setting up of research and development units by companies operating in Nigeria and teaching and research equipment provision to laboratories and classrooms.

According to the source, ASUU took the decision after “observing all possible means of making government to implement the agreement yielded no results.”

Meanwhile, immediately the text message circulated, some lecturers at the Premier University who were slated for lectures did not go while students waited in vain.

The University of Ibadan undergraduate resumed the second semester last week leaving the students to groan with the latest development.

Finally d list is out, but I may not have time to help u check ur names as usual. So if u ar near by jst cm over and do ot ursf. Am hvin 3 different lectures.

Finally d list is out, but I may not have time to help u check ur names as usual. So if u ar near by jst cm over and do ot ursf.

JAMB Remarking Saga: Did you watch NTA News on the issue? According to the reports by NTA, 132 candidates were present during the re-marking process and JAMB asked them to pay 100,000 and if JAMB is wrong, they will refund the 100k and give an extra 100k.

Well when the process began, it was clear that all the students actually failed the test or didn't shade properly. This process was caught on camera as the students were scrutinized on live TV.

JAMB however, later returned the 100k paid by the students claiming that their integrity was all they wanted to defend and that they have always been right, claiming that the students got exactly what they scored.

So who's right now?

The Federal Government on Tuesday in Abuja approved cut-off marks for
admission into tertiary institutions for the 2013/2014 academic
session.

The Minister of Education, Ruqayyatu Rufa’i, announced that *a
minimum of 150* cut-off marks for Colleges of Education, Polytechnics
and other non-degree-awarding institutions, while universities (State,
Private and Federal), will accept a *minimum of 180* cut-off
benchmark.

With the release of this information, all is now set for institutions
to begin releasing their Post-UTME information. Aspirants are advised
to get their original study materials such as post-utme past questions
for their schools of choice.

Bashimi: Pls room i got 235 and i choose uniabuja as first choice course statistics pls any hope for me pls.i mean dis year jamb o

well, u are lucky because statistic students are usually nt large in num.

Dere is great hope dat d upcoming list maybe next week or b4 dis month end. So b ready.

Phinity318: @Mr.Presido i yam countin on help me carry out my above plea.nd oda members of this forum whom av contributed in one way or the other.jst knw dt ur effort is greatly apreciated..one love...Aluta Continua....Great Uni Abuja Student(Great)

whch D.E again, dere is no separate list 4 D.E dey do all tins 2gether wth jambite until when dey ar gvin matric num u will b separated dat is if u hv upper credit bt if nt u will join dem again.

Swaycater: English will soon die

lolz na so, as 4 me am jst catching fun wth d way sm pple make use of english here. Truly it is so sweet.

Osunstate: pls....op uniabuja has started engineering courses

no

asese100: presido hw fa, lecture don start 4 ur dept.?

yeah

Swaycater: Hmmmmmm, it been ah while, ow u all doing! what Presido said is loud and clear, understood by English Learners like us

lolZ