ASUU To End Strike Next Year; UNILAG Faction Insist It Must End This Week

Wednesday, November 27, 2013

A faction of the University of Lagos (UNILAG) chapter on Monday alleged that the Academic Staff Union of Nigerian Universities (ASUU) is planning to end the ongoing five-month strike mid-January next year.

Leader of the faction, Dr Adeyemi Daramola, a lecturer in the Department of English, Faculty of Arts accused the body of assuming oracular posture on the strike.

According to him, “The position of ASUU has not demonstrated original function of its rules which says “reports on agreement from the union universities’ branches should be collated and announced”.

“ASUU-NEC has assumed an oracular posture by its very poor communication to members, government and the Nigerian society.

“The target of ASUU is to call off the strike by mid-January of 2014 which is no longer a rumour in the domain of its members. We have postponed other meetings of this pressure version of UNILAG

“If necessary, we shall take all legitimate steps to ensure that normalcy is restored to all the Nigerian universities as soon as possible, as the group would not accept the rumour of a resumption date fixed for January, 2014. About two universities’ academic calendar have been wasted on strike, including lecturers’ four months salaries lost.”

The faction, however, insisted that the closure of Nigerian universities by the lecturers must end this week.

Another leader of the anti-strike faction, Dr Michael Ogbeide of the History Department said that “the ASUU strike had become nonsense and must be stopped. A lot of our members also believe so but are afraid to speak out,” adding that the faction would keep pressurising its leadership until the strike is called off.

Meanwhile, there were reports on Monday that the UNILAG ASUU had decided to withdraw from the strike but this was debunked by some members of the union, though it was confirmed that there was a split among the members with some kicking against the institution's continued participation in the strike.

According to a source who pleaded anonymity, the congress actually turned out disorganised and divided, as some members, during the meeting began to protest, demanding UNILAG’s withdrawal from the strike. The meeting became rowdy and the two factions later held separate meetings, with both reportedly resolving to maintain their postures.

The main body insisted that the strike would be on until grey areas are sorted out.

Source: Nigerian Tribune

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ASUU Set To Suspend Nationwide Strike

Sunday, November 24, 2013

Academic activities may pick up next week in the nation’s public universities as the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) would this weekend hold its National Executive Council (NEC) meeting to take a position on the on-going five- month-old strike.

Saturday Sun source revealed that national officers and branch chairmen of ASUU have arrived at the venue of the crucial meeting to deliberate on the industrial action.

The industrial action, which enters 144 days today, took off on July 1, 2013 and has crippled academic activities in federal and state universities.

Ahead of the NEC meeting, some members of ASUU in two universities, Enugu State University (ESUT) and University of Agricultural Abeokuta (UNAAB) had announced that their institutions would open for academic activities.

Also, the authorities of the University of Lagos despite the on-going strike have started the screening/registration for new students offered admission for the 2013/2014 academic session.

The source told our Correspondent that ASUU is aware of public concern about the situation in the universities and that NEC would do the needful after deliberating on reports from the outcome of the various congress.

According to the source, having mourned and honoured late Professor Festus Iyayi, who died while on his way to Bayero University Kano (BUK) for a NEC meeting by suspending the meeting, ASUU leadership felt it was ripe to hold the crucial meeting.

He refused to give insight to the outcome of the NEC meeting but stressed that the decision would be fair based on the various congress resolutions of the meeting its leaders held with President Goodluck Jonathan.

Expectations were high before the postponed ASUU NEC meeting because of the death of its former national President that the industrial action would be suspended after the Federal Government shifted ground on the demands of the university lecturers.

Recalled that President Jonathan had to intervene after the Vice President, Namadi Sambo and the chairman, Implementation and Monitoring Committee led by the Benue State Governor, Gabriel Suswam failed to produce positive results. At the crucial November 5 meeting with ASUU leaders in Aso Rock, the government agreed to provide N220billion yearly for the next five years and improve on the amount to be released for the contentious Earned Allowance.

Source: Sun Newspapers

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BREAKING NEWS: ASUU Meets Tomorrow To End Strike.

Saturday, November 16, 2013

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) will be holding their re-scheduled meeting tomorrow, November 16, 2013 in Kano.

ASUU's National Executive council (NEC) members have assured Nigerians that the strike will be called off within the nest 7 working days.
The ASUU meeting was called off following the death of Dr Iyayi on his way to the Kano meeting, when the vehicle that he was travelling with, collides with the convoy of Kogi state governor.

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Asuu Postpones National Meeting To January Over The Death Of Former President

Thursday, November 14, 2013

The Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, has postponed its National Executive Council (NEC) meeting, which was supposed to hold today, due to the loss of one of the prominent members of the union, Professor Festus Iyayi, who died in an auto crash on Lokoja-Abuja Expressway, on his way to the Kano, yesterday, for the union’s meeting.

The decision to call off or continue the four months old strike embarked upon by the University lecturers was expected to be made at the meeting which would have held today but for Iyayi’s death.

The union called for the meeting after fresh negotiations with the president, where the government was said to have shown commitment to ending the strike by improving on earlier offers.

The meeting will now hold on January 15 2014

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No Amount Of Threat Of Forceful Reopening Of Universities Will End The Strike: ASUU STRIKE

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

As leaders of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) meet with President Goodluck Jonathan today, the union has said the President lacks the right to arbitrarily reopen the universities, which were shut down following the union’s national strike.
ASUU was reacting to reports that the President had directed the reopening of universities with or without ASUU.
Its Chairman at the University of Calabar (UNICAL), Dr James Okpiliya, spoke yesterday with journalist in Calabar, the Cross River State, on the matter.
He said: “The President has no right to reopen schools. In the first place, he did not close the schools. ASUU also did not close the schools. If he likes, let him direct the vice chancellors to reopen the universities. But the issue is that academics will not return to the classrooms until all the issues in the 2009 agreement as well as the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the union and the Federal Government are sufficiently implemented.
“In the military era, the Head of State never used force to resolve its impasse with the union; not now, when we are in a democracy. If he opens the schools, he can come and teach in the universities. If he uses brute force, as it is rumoured, he can as well return to the classroom to teach.
“I advise him to sit down sincerely with the leadership of ASUU with a view to resolving the knotty issues in the implementation of the 2009 agreement and the MoU. These are the main issues in contention in the current struggle.
“I believe Mr President has not been adequately briefed; that is why he has been insinuating that the strike is political. The meeting should, therefore, afford him the opportunity to hear from ASUU himself with a view to resolving the issues.
“Remember the strike itself would not have been avoidable if those who midwifed the negotiation of this agreement had it captured in the previous budgets. But because they failed to put the financial implication of this agreement in the budget since 2009, we find ourselves here today.
“The only thing that can bring about normalcy is when the issues in contention are resolved.”
The ASUU has said no amount of threat of forceful reopening of universities will end its nationwide strike.
The union said the government’s threat would only be counter-productive rather than achieve the intended goal.
Source: The Nation

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