On Sunday, the Academic Staff Union of Universities and Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities said the Federal Government had yet to reach out to them since the Nigeria Labour Congress announced a plan to hold nationwide solidarity protests on Tuesday and Wednesday.
They also said they were still awaiting official communication from the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, days after the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), directed the minister and other government officials to resolve the ongoing strike by the unions.
The president of The Academic Staff Union of Universities Professor Emmanuel Osodeke in an interview gave an update on the prolonged Asuu strike, the two weeks ultimatum the president gave, and other issues.
Give us an update on where we are right now on the negotiation with the federal government on the issue of payment etc
This thing started some time ago and we have finished all the negotiations on our IPPIS agreement.
On the U-tax the three solutions have also been tested and we are waiting for the result. That is where we are basically.
We finished the negotiation on the 16th of June is like about one month ago and till now they’ve not reached us on whether they’ve agreed or if there are issues we need to sort out, but they have not reached out to us. About six weeks now no report from them.
In terms of U-tax/IPPIS, we finished testing two weeks ago, and till now we have not heard their final report so that is where we are basically.
Based on that, and other interceptions by the Nigeria Labour Congress as way back as May and nothing happen, they’ve decided to join us.
Money Being owed to the universities, where are we on that? Have they made Payment?
No, they have not even agreed on what to pay and how they are going to pay it. We have given them the opportunity to spread it over time and we found out that they have not done anything.
On the issue of our earned academic allowances, they are owing backlog, similarly, they have not paid anything.
Based on our MOA of 2020, they’re owing us two traches, they would have paid the second trach in February this year and we are in July, they have not even paid the one of August last year or the one of February this year so these are the issue.
Since we started this strike they have done exactly nothing on all the issues which we gave them notice initially and started the strike. We are going for more than five months.
Some people have shared the opinion that lecturers and ASUU are being selfish in their quest for answers to the detriment of students who are left at home’ What will your answer be to those who share that sentiment?
My answer to that question is that, those who share that view those not like Nigeria as a country. Everybody who shares that view does not like Nigeria.
Let me ask one question maybe it will help us. In the 60 70s those who were around when you enter universities yous see sons of Governors, Ministers, Presidents, Military General, you will see foreign lecturers and students in that university, Do we still have them?
If we don’t have them why? that is why we are struggling, we are not struggling for our personal interests. They are holding me and my member’s salary for five months.
People are looking for what to save their children. we are the ones being punished but we are fighting for the future of Nigeria.
To bring Nigerian universities to the worst standard where foreign lecturers and students can come to Nigeria and will not pay so much of our money to that University as tuition fees.
If you check the report of last year, it will show that Nigerians spent 1.6 trillion Niara on tuition fees in foreign universities.
We are spending 200 billion naira or more on tuition fees in Ghana. We were the ones saying Ghana must go but today Ghana is telling us to go.
So anybody saying we are punishing students does not like this country and when you check the children are not in the public universities.
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