₦airaland Forum

God bless you this wonderful gesture especially to a widow. More to you so that you will continue to a blessing to others

Two of you useless parties should getat

faoogoke:
ASUU thinks its business as usual. Go on strike, call it off and get paid do the months strike lingered.
There's a court injuction that ordered them back to work. Going on strike is a violation of the court order.
They have the option of suing the government for payment of the backlog of salaries or eat the humble pie and plead with government to pay them.

There are always loopholes in laws. ASUU can go on strike base on withheld salaries as a fresh strike. Again, I don't know exactly what they mean by no work no Pay in this case. You sign agreement, refuse to honor, renegotiate and refuse to honor, the, the workers do industrial action and you are talking rubbish. Even if they don't go on strike, what's the point of resuming when nothing will happen at the schools. The newly registered unions are also of no use as ASUU still hold the aces. The withheld salaries will eventually be paid by this government or the next. Why waste everyone's time?

mukthar2000:
Oga buba marwa, I always so much respect you and ur perfect work since the time u were Lagos state Governor, but with what u just said about a Dog cost 20000dollars u really break my heart.

You broke it yourself. Kindly google the type dog he is talking about and see for yourself. Moreover, the man said a training school project is already going on, meaning in the future, the cost will reduce. What else do you want of him?

This is not right. Whose money is he using for these donations. I don't get it. He may even be responsible for the cost of all their foolish meetings abroad. I don't just understand this waste

Kingcalls:
Government favoritism , former capital, ... dont forget that lagos has the only real functional port ... if we had an equally good port in Anambra, do u think we gonna be in lagos buying up all the properties there ... if major offices were on the mainland, the Island will be a very dry place to leave in and properties will be very cheap... always understand the effect of proximity in business

Exactly what I am trying to say. Lagos has some attributes suitable for business hence it's attraction to people all over. It is beyond favoritism or former capital. Was calabar not a capital? Is Abuja not a capital? Why are businesses not concentrated there? Right now, in terms of security, who will want to invest or move business to say north or east when there is sit at home, bandits, terrorist etc. Lagos is better secured for both Nigerians and foreigners alike, one of the reasons for people's choice. It will interest you to know that, British airways has diverted it's flights from Abuja to Lagos for security reasons currently.
As you say, Lagos proximity to the ocean also counts. But again, that does not stop any state from getting a license to develop ports in their states. Lagos just finished the Lekki port and they got permission for badagri port few weeks ago.

Kingcalls:
If the igbos leave lagos ...ur IGR will drop by 70%

Some statements are not just worth making in an argument. I am not a Lagosian or Yoruba but this your assertion is meaningless. First of all ask the Igbos what brought them to Lagos or better still who brought them to Lagos. Lagos did not park a train in south east or anywhere to load Igbos and bring them here. Something about Lagos attracted them that they did not see it somewhere. So stop thinking if they leave, they will not, because they will loose

Okoroawusa:
Why be say people no dey defect to Labour Party?

The thing enh. Well, many Nigerians never tire on top of the suffering impose by APC and PDP

OPICANTO2223:
It still beat my imagination that every week they will bring it up. Nurses japa 500tiimes more than doctors but you wont hear it.

I think they need to call attention to it. It is not a good thing that Doctors are leaving the system in that magnitude. And ofcourse, the impact of doctors leaving will put more stress on the system than nurses leaving. I believe the turn over of nurses is far more than that of doctors across our schools. Therefore it is going to be easier to fill nurses gaps than doctors

OPICANTO2223:
Drs are using this very few japa opportunity to creat relevance. Tell us how many that failed the foreign exam. It will amuse everyone. 600 Nigerian doctors applied and 90 passed. Most of the doctors are doing health assistant oversea.

So how does your assertion dispute the fact that we are short of doctors and our health care system is decaying daily? And please, why do our leaders Japa to treat ear pain, head ache etc if you are trying to dispute this report. One ekwerenmadu is still in prison in UK for the fact that, as a leader, he has no confidence in our health care system

emonis88:
Must u bring tribalism in everything? After all a Yoruba guy helped her, and am sure he is her boyfriend.

Are you sure you did not quote me in error? I am struggling to find any tribal issue in my comment. Kindly point it out to me please

Interesting. Chidinma has a long way to go on this case.

phemmyfour:
We can never run out of doctors. We can only run out of competent doctors. Thousands of graduates are being churn out by our universities yearly

That is the point exactly. We should even worry more about the quality of the thousands churned out every year with substandard facilities in government schools.

BleedTears:
You're really a fool if you don't know what a natural disasters is.

You need to go study.

If you're in country that experience earthquakes and tsunami, you go still say you thought you transformed entire world.

That is the way we are in this country. You can't blame him. If this same flood was happening in Lagos, many comments worse than what he wrote would have come on here. I still remember threads on flash flood in Lagos and what people used to comment. It is a pity but that is the situation

Kasssandra:
Yes, they should. There is no where where I justify corruption.

But the thing is, universites have to keep on making or getting a lot of money. Returing the loot would only help for a few years...assuming we put in the universities. It is what happens when the loot has been spent that is the issue.

Like how do we fund things like overheads, accomodation, upgrading of facilites, funding of research facilities, research grants, even things like university schools, hospitals, et al? On a yearly basis.

Loot can only go so far.

The USSR when it came into being in 1917 took the loot from the rich...and it worked...till they ran out of loot.

Yes I share your sentiments too. Many of these services come too cheap here. Just like the case of subsidy. Removing will be far better for the nation on an ideal condition. However I am skeptical about it. Remove it and the money will end in people's pocket is my only fear

baralatie:
It does not work that way!
As long as kogi state has entered the case(if through).it will have to see it to the end
Unless the kogi state does not have evidence to prove their claim .it is an open and closed matter
Court will strike it out without mincing words

people have the liberty to withdraw civil case and settle out of court. Infact, the court encourages that a lot.

Kasssandra:
And where would the government get the money for all that

1.Good roads....usually road tolls. But in 2002, we removed tolling from the roads, and everyone cheered...now our roads are worse.

2.Electricity 20 hours...when the government is sabotaging the power sector by forcing them to lose money by setting their price for them...instead of letting them set their prices....at the end, they don't make a profit to fix things and attract investment.

3.Health: Hospital fees are too low in government hospitals...and at the end, the hospitals don't have the money to imprve things. Plus taxes. UK funds its NHS from taxing people.

4.Security...the same thing. Our police polices people on one tenth of what New Yourk city polices its people...and we have 210 million of us. Naturally, ye pay taxes.


Or how do we fund these things you want? On revenue from 2-3 m bpd of oil which isn;t enough for a nation of 20 million people, talk;less of 200 million people (Don';t mention Saudi and UAE. UAE produces 3 m bpd and has 15 million people.. Saudi has 40 millon and produces 10 m bpd).

Or we take another loan?

Reality is very hard to face.

n.b This does not excuse Buhari, or bad leadership...this shows what a good leader needs to do. In addtion to actually fighting corruption.

Let them stop stealing the billions they are stealing. Then, every Nigerian should remove corruption from their blood. Before you know, things will be far better

TheNiceGuy:
I hope ASUU won't be paid for the 8 months they've been on strike anyway

Should they be paid, who'll compensate students

So if they are not paid the 8 months, how is that compensation to students? I don't understand this your logic. If you are asking for compensation for students, ask if you don't want to, leave it

Another administration will come and be pressured to withdraw all court cases if they are not going the way of Dangote. By then, Bello will not be relevant in the scheme of things again

Angelfrost:
Will proscribing a labor union end the consistent and glaring rot in the education and healthcare sectors?!!

Sometimes, I think some of you are either clueless about leadership or just too selfish to face facts!

The tire me. Many of them are very clueless. Just resume resume. To do what exactly? This nation deserves more than pity. Many of the so called youths are as lazy mentally as Buhari insinuated. Very unfortunate

Ebubu:
ASUU should look for other means to drag FG example court cases, instead of industrial strike.

Strike is the only way they will keep dragging. Federal government d obey court?

Shows hoe neglected our education is. But some empty brains are rejoicing that government forced ASUU to call off strike not even understanding that certain things were agreed on. Buhari was right after all. Most youths are lazy

Nosayer:
Shows you're not in tune with how the strike was called off.

If they called off the strike based on the court's ruling alone, it would have been disastrous for the students.

Have you seen teachers working maximally when forced to work before, talk more of university professors.

The House of representatives waded in and have been negotiating with then for a while. Now, they're already talking about how to settle their arrears for the 8 months.

ASUU still lost?

The best Nigerian University is ranked 401st in the world, i just saw that on a thread above this one. It beats my imagination on how some people are happy in their myopic thoughts that government has won not even knowing the agreements arrived at. Of a truth, Buhari may not be that intelligent but he was when he said Nigerian youths are lazy. Many indeed are lazy

yinkus6750:
What a shame .
Guess PMBs government held ASUU by the jugular, hence they had no other option than to retreat.
Enough of toying with the future of the youths.
Everytime, strike , strike , strike.
Are they the only union affected by situation of the country since years past ?
Better to jaw jaw than war war.
They should have waited for FG to proscribe the union and arrest the leaders for contempt of court.
The breakfast would have been sweet.
Hope they won't get paid for awoof 8 months of doing nothing ?

someone wrote the below. Kindly go through it

"Suspension of strike - the losers and the winners:
1. ASUU: they will receive withheld salary, 50 billion has been mapped out for earn allowance, 170 billion for salary increment and 250 billion for revitalization. With all these, the strike was SUSPENDED conditionally. ASUU ARE AMONG THE WINNERS

2. Speaker house of rep.: Femi took it upon himself to mediate between ASUU and the president. His effort paid. ASUU, the students and his party APC see him as a hero. His effort will impact positively on his political career. FEMI IS AMONG THE WINNERS

3. FG: They won on issue of payment platform. The burden of financing higher institution has been partially transfered to schools and by extension to students and parents thereby partly relieving FG. For the rulling party, strike will no longer be a problem during campaigns. FG IS AMONG THE WINNERS

4. STUDENTS: They have lost 8 months which can not be recovered. FG insisted that from 2024 earn allowance will be generated by universities. That means there will be great increase in tuition fees. Students may have to pay between 150k to 1 Millon depending on the course of study and school. STUDENTS ARE AMONG THE LOSERS

4. CHRIS NGIGE: He fought ASUU and the minister of education. Insisted on increase in tuition fees. He did what he could to frustrated the effort of negotiation committee. He blackmailed the presidency and probably tried to use ASUU to frustrate his political party against next election. At the end his effort was in vain. His political party is calling for his sack. He is seen in bad light by ASUU, other ministers and his party. NGIGE IS AMONG THE LOSERS."

By Punch Editorial Board
13th October 2022


BEREFT of practical ideas on ways to end the protracted strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities, the Federal Government last week hurriedly registered two rival unions in the university system in an undisguised move to divide lecturers. The new unions are the National Association of Medical and Dental Academics and the Congress of Nigerian University Academics. The government misses the point; it should focus on the short-term goal of getting schools to reopen, and on the long-term objective of revitalising the tertiary education system, its funding and equipping.

Obviously confident that the move would end the strike, the Minister of Labour and Productivity, Chris Ngige, while presenting the certificates of registration to the two unions, said they would exist alongside ASUU. Public university lecturers had embarked on strike on February 14 to protest over unpaid allowances, demand a better welfare package, and better funding of the universities, among others.

The government’s move could eventually prove counter-productive; unions opposed to strikes today may become militant in future. Brinksmanship is not the way out: the issues and ASUU’s demands are germane: fulfil past agreements, fund tertiary education adequately, and provide better welfare for the teachers.

Lecturers and indeed, all workers have the right to freely form, join or opt out of trade or professional associations. The International Labour Organisation describes this principle of the freedom of association as “the core of its values;” it is enshrined in its constitution adopted in 1919, and reaffirmed thereafter in several treaties and the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948). At face value, therefore, the new unions accord with global best practices. And viewed alongside the disagreement of a minority of lecturers across the country with ASUU’s frequent strikes, rival unions offer them other avenues to ventilate alternative views and aspirations.




But birthed by a desperate government, the new unions may struggle for legitimacy in future. Besides, the government may unwittingly be setting the stage for unhealthy rivalry, acrimony, and mutual distrust on the campuses. Multiple unions do not address the problems of the tertiary education system.

Resolving three issues should be the government’s preoccupation: one is raising the funds it agreed to release to lecturers and the institutions; how to rationalise its universities, and how to fund them in a sustainable manner. Anything less cannot guarantee industrial harmony.

Sadly, Nigeria has yet to meet the UNESCO benchmark that governments should spend between four and six per cent of GDP on education, and that in the government’s annual budget, a significant percentage should be earmarked for education.


Since assuming office in 2015, the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), has not drastically departed from his predecessors’ low funding for education. In 2016, the regime’s first full year budget, it allocated N369.6 billion representing 6.7 per cent of the N6 trillion budget to education; in 2017, N550.5 billion or 7.38 per cent of the N7.29 trillion budget. In 2020, N671.07 billion of N10.33 trillion amounting to 6.7 per cent was allocated; while in 2021, education received N742 billion, 5.6 per cent of the N13.6 trillion budget. In 2022, education was earmarked N923.79 billion amounting to 5.39 per cent of the N17.13 trillion budget plan.

Education is on the concurrent legislative list, indicating that both the federal and state governments are responsible for driving quality research and learning. State governors should do much more in funding and upgrading their universities.

The proliferation of universities amid chronic underfunding, infrastructural rot, poor pay and emoluments of staff and faculty, and understaffing is unreasonable. Both the states and the Federal Government engage in this reckless practice. At the tertiary level especially, quality drives education and not just numbers.

Worried by the situation, the Senior Staff Association of Universities and other stakeholders have cautioned against establishing universities that governments obviously cannot fund. Save for possibly Lagos, all the national and sub-national governments are cash-strapped. Sixty-three bills are currently before the National Assembly for the creation of additional tertiary institutions. Ignorantly, federal and state legislators view them as ‘constituency projects’ with which to score political points.

There are currently 49 federal universities listed by the National Universities Commission, but none is well-funded. The state universities are worse off, created by governors without adequate planning or revenue sources just to satisfy political ends.

Laughably, the government approved the disbursement of N18 billion as take-off grant for four new specialised universities of technology and health sciences in June 2021. Rationality prevails elsewhere. The Institute for Fiscal Studies notes that under England’s current higher education funding system, the government pays around £21 billion to fund the education of each cohort of around 425,000 English-domiciled full-time undergraduate students studying anywhere in the UK.

Some alumni associations in Nigeria have tried to support in the areas of research, medical centres, renovations, and buildings. But their donations are a drop in the ocean. They should do more to salvage the universities.

In the United States, philanthropists, foundations, and wealthy alumni support colleges. A businessman, Michael Bloomberg, in 2018, donated $1.8 billion to his alma mater, Johns Hopkins University. Nike’s co-founder, Phil Knight, donated hundreds of millions of dollars spanning years to the University of Oregon, from where he graduated. A 2020 research by the Council for Advancement and Support of Education showed that alumni donations to US colleges accumulated to $11 billion in 2019.

The Nigerian government should merge some of the federal universities to achieve optimal standards. It should shut down the extra multiple military and paramilitary universities it rashly approved in recent years without regard to needs and funding.

Multiple unions and court rulings ordering ASUU back to work leave the issues of release of promised funds and equipping the universities unresolved. The government and the ASUU should therefore urgently reach an agreement for an out-of-court settlement to solve these knotty issues.

Already, an entire academic session is lost; for the sake of the hapless students, and their parents/guardians, urgently, both sides should shift ground.

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Contact: theeditor[at]punchng.com

haslaw:
Stop ranting and foaming at the mouth and listen to logic.

1) The ASUU president's graduated from a foreign university a few weeks ago

2) ASSU are not above the law. It would become contempt of law

3) The case is no longer between ASSU and FG but between ASSU and the court.

4) If is court with contempt, they would be considered as a lawless organisation and FG would start taking steps to deregister them

It is illogic i am listening to from you. How do you force people to go back to such work as lecturing via questionable court orders? What will be the quality of their output? Did the ASUU president graduate with a first degree or even a second degree? If the schools here were anything to write home about who will pay cutthroat fees to foreign schools who on the other hand use the money to grant their citizens free education and also better their economies. Your sense will not tell you that if the governments of those countries were treating their education the way it is done here, the thieving class will not be able to go and enroll their kids there. That ASUU president or anyone garduated abroad further strenthens my point that our education system is nothing to write home about hence the need to seek for a better place.

However, as it is with anyone who supports the clueless government, i will not expect you to know all this. You will rather unknowingly make another point that will further strenthen what i have been saying since. Common sense is indeed not common.

haslaw:
Even members of ASUU would not argue your DAFT ways.

Let ASUU be so f00leesh to disobey court order and see

What will they see? You are just mirroring what you are. No wonder we are led by this useless people. We will see the wrong path they are taking and foolishly back them. The same people with their children studying abroad cos of the decay in our schools o. But here you are dancing shamelessly in their support. There no hope for this country with this kind of mentality

BeardGangJnr1:
FG rendered ASUU handicapped already,
Xccept u are hatching a plan to disobey dual Court orders....u have zero options other than resuming... regardless of the offer presented to UU, by FG (Buhari, Ngige and Reps speaker)
.

Unfortunately, NLC leadership is occupied by wannabe politicians...!
.

Appeal court simply said, Obey before complain
.

If u check very well....there wasn't any significant changes in the content the Reps speaker presented and what the FG renegotiated, ergo students shouldn't have been kept this Long at home.
We all yearn for the betterment of our citadels of learning...mind UU, I'm not taking sides.

Please can you put side by side what Ngige put forward and what the house agreed? It looks as though you even know what has not been disclosed already. Many people speculate on what they know nothing about and it is a big problem. A lot of people don't even know the issues involved in the ASUU and government tussles. The only thing they know is ASUU want their salaries increased and that's all. It is quite a shame on this country that we cannot get the simplest of things right

haslaw:
Stop advertising your ignorance. That would have been contempt of court and that would make ASUU a lawless organisation

Did you not see that it was a court case?

You the ignorant one here. So what happens when you force them to open schools? Will you also force them to teach? And what will the students learn under poor condition of university together with unhappy lecturers? Ask your self why these politicians pay huge sums abroad for their children to study, go to abroad to treat themselves of headache, ear pain etc, even have political meetings abroad. Ask yourself these questions and maybe your ignorance will be cleared

BeardGangJnr1:
FG rendered ASUU handicapped already,
Xccept u are hatching a plan to disobey dual Court orders....u have zero options other than resuming... regardless of the offer presented to UU, by FG (Buhari, Ngige and Reps speaker)
.

Unfortunately, NLC leadership is occupied by wannabe politicians...!
.

Appeal court simply said, Obey before complain

Oga stop with this nonsense. Are you proud of how our universities are? The very people you are defending have their children in schools abroad. Why are they not in the fantastic schools here? If not that the government is useless, how will you even think of forcing lecturers to class via court rulings instead of ironing out things amicably? ASUU can obey the court judgement but will the teach? Who told you they cannot declare another strike in the next one month after resumption? So how have you solved the issue? What the house of rep did is what Ngige and Adamu should have done since instead of grandstanding.

And hope the government will honor it's agreement with ASUU, otherwise we will be back to square one soon

gp6liveth:
Who is this fool calling professors cowards

Do not mind this people. Check very well and this kind of person is in the category of youth. Shamelessly glorifying government mediocrity. He may even want to japa and leave this country simply because the people he is so much proud of have rendered the country useless. Such a big shame

sofeo:
The truth is, they themselves are actually getting really fed up, they never thought thing would be this messed up.

That's why they are trying to consider options they once rejected when the strike was still fresh.

If Buhari should continue to show them, the No Work No Pay policy, along with other tactics, they will continue to be weakened and consider resuming in no time.

Cowards.

No wonder, the country is this way and people especially professional are running away in their numbers. When the vultures in government steal our common wealth to send their children abroad in the best schools empowering those economies, attend to ordinary ear pain abroad, vacation there and have common meetings there, yet they have people drumming their support. No one talks about the sorry state of all our sectors. The people willing to speak are tag cowards. Is there hope for this nation?