Following the refusal of university lecturers to resume classes at the expiration of the 9 December ultimatum, the Federal Government has summoned all Vice Chancellors of federal and state universities to a crucial meeting in Abuja on Wednesday.
Also invited to the meeting were members of the Implementation Monitoring Committee (IMC) On Needs Assessment Report for inauguration.
The Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, has a representative in the IMC.
A statement signed by the Executive Secretary, National Universities Commission, Professor Julius Okojie, on behalf of the Supervising Minister of Education, Barrister Nyeson Wike, published in a national daily today, called on Vice Chancellors to come to the meeting with a list of their prioritised projects based on Needs Assessment Report for funding.
“In addition, Vice Chancellors of state universities must come along with with their account details,” the statement added.
It is not clear whether the meeting was called to disburse the N200b the government said it had deposited in an account with the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, which ASUU is insisting must be communicated to it formally.
The President, ASUU, Dr. Nasir Fagge Isa, said the lecturers were not moved by the N200 billion that the federal Government announced that it had deposited in the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN.
In an interview in the current edition of TheNEWS magazine, Isa explained that the union was deceived in the past.
“In January 2012, when the Secretary to the Government [Anyim Pius Anyim] of the Federation was dictating that MoU, he told us that they had already set N100 billion aside and that once we finished the NEEDS Assessment report, the money would be made available for the commencement of implementation of the revitalisation of universities. That is almost two years ago.”
A survey of the various campuses of the nation’s universities this morning revealed that members of ASUU have defied Federal Government directive that they should return to work.
At the University of Lagos, University of Ibadan, Oyo State, Lagos State University, Ojo, University of Benin, Edo State, lecturers stuck to their guns and refused to attend classes.
Though non-academic staff were seen at UNILAG working, the classes were deserted.
One place that witnessed considerable human presence was the University’s Sport Centre, where lecturers were seen doing some work-outs.
A lecturer who spoke with newsmen said: “No lecturer is paying attention to the rubbish the Federal Government is doing.”
The Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Social Sciences said they would frustrate any move by the government and its agents on campus to compel them to work.
It was learnt the university authorities last Friday directed all faculties to hold the faculty board studies meeting in anticipation of resumption, but no faculty member complied.
Last week, the Unilag Chapter of ASUU held its congress in which the lecturers decided to continue with the strike.
Dr. Karo Ogbinaka, UNILAG ASUU Chairman, said “members are resolute and believe in the position of the union.”UI dares FG
At the University of Ibadan (UI), the situation was the same. No single lecturer was found in the classes.
NE went round some departments and found out that no lecturer signed the register for resumption in their departments.
Most of the lecturers who spoke to our correspondent on phone said that they were not scared by the threat of the Federal Government to sack them.
They urged the Federal Government to quickly answer their requests.
Last week, the school authority sent a memo to all the provosts and deans that any lecturer who failed to comply with the directive of the government to resume would be sacked.
In Benin, Chairman of UNIBEN ASUU, Dr. Anthony Monye-Emina, said members of the branch will continue with the strike until directed otherwise by the national secretariat.
“We are disregarding the ultimatum and threat of sack by the federal government. We are still on strike and none of our members has signed any register to resume work. We will continue with the strike until otherwise directed by the national secretariat of the Union,” Monye-Emina said.
The university campus was devoid of the usual heavy human traffic as only few teaching staff, few students, mostly medical students and non-teaching staff, were seen going about their different businesses.
The Public Relations Officer of UNIBEN, Barr. Harrison Osarenren, could not be reached on his mobile phone for comment as it was switched off.
A member of the Senate Committee on Education, Senator Abubakar Bagudu, at the weekend said that issuing threat and deadline to the lecturers was not the best way to resolve the lingering ASUU strike.
“I condemn all provocative statements from whosoever. We are all Nigerians, ASUU members are Nigerians committed to the development of the Nigerian state. We have interacted with them, and they are committed to the uplift meant of the education sector along with others who are also committed to the sector. So, issuing threat by whosoever is condemnable,” Bagudu said. Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everyday
Advertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
Well said!
ReplyDeleteThe ball is in the court of the FG.
dont mind this govt, this is another ploy they want to use to keep deceiving nigerians, we are tired of them.
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to see how this drama will finally end. I wish there were never a Union called "Asuu"!
ReplyDeleteSeriousl?
DeleteAnd so what do you wish? That we continue with the decayed system that produces unbaked graduates with certificates that can't be used even with Nigeria, not to mention outside the country! Can't Nigerians like you struggle for anything for once in your lives; everybody wants to go back to school, as if the schools are worth going back to! Parents and students should team up with ASSU and push FG to do what's right in that sector, then we can move on from there. Where NLC and Nigerians in general have chickened out, ASSU is dogging in!
ReplyDeleteGOD z in control
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to see d end of dis seasonal film call asuu n fg ....ahhhhhh....I can't want to see d end oooooo
ReplyDeleteWhere Students will talk they wont. I wonder why they allowed the ASUU member to be playing with their education. Why cant they gang up and chase away the Asuu member out
ReplyDeleteASUU has become a laughing stock. They were fighting for a just course but them resolving not to come to any agreement proves that they have a selfish intention behind it all. Please u are doing more hard now than good ASUU call of this strike let our kids go back to school. 5months is way too much for a just course even after some agreements, especially since we heard that the billions have been paid. so what else are u looking for? besides u already charge our kids for handouts and more so please return to the class rooms or do the right thing and resign so we know u are standing to ur course do not expect to get paid for work u did not do course 5months will definitely affect our childrens educative mentality. Now u would rush them n teach them less so why do u want to get paid? if u are truly a humanitarian group, u wont bother about getting paid. Learn from other countries like the late Mandela, he did not fight for monetary things
ReplyDeleteTo hell with ASUU. The strike is political. Being engineered by forces outside tge union. With the level of talks and intervention by no less a person than the president. ASUU if wise should have called off the strike but they wont cos they are being teleguided from outside the fold for selfish reasons
ReplyDeleteWhat is producing substandard n incompetent graduates is sorting by lecturers.........
ReplyDeleteWhat is producing substandard n incompetent graduates is sorting by lecturers.........
ReplyDeleteEnd of ASUU Strike - Subject of Public Debate
ReplyDeleteTo me, it seems that President Goodluck Jonathan has no regards to his counterpart, President Nasir Fegge. Both presidents now were Vice-presidents in 2009 when the agreement was made.
Now, by the special Grace of God, the two one-time Vice-presidents are now Presidents. Now, in order to end the over five months strike by Academic Staff Union of Universities in Nigeria, I suggest that both President Goodluck Jonathan and President Nasir Fegge be subjected to public debate where Nigerian masses would be the judge.
In the public debate, President Goodluck Jonathan should argue for why his administration should not implement an agreement that was made in 2009, while his counterpart, President Nasir Fegge should argue against that.
At the end of the debate, whoever the Nigerian masses acknowledged as the winner in the debate, the other party should as a matter of urgency accept the result of the verdict because Nigerian masses I believe will never be partial in their judgment.
If President Goodluck Jonathan emerges as the winner in the debate, ASUU should call off the strike and apologize to Nigerians and Nigerian students immediately. On the other hand, if President Nasir Fegge is the winner in the proposed debate, the Federal Government of Nigeria should apologize to Nigerians and Nigerian students for keeping them at home for over five months now.
This I believe would put an end to this strike and we will move our nation forward.
The decay in our universities had to do with the ASUU members who will teach only for one week in a semester (one before the exams). It is at this point that they drop a drab called handout which contains area of concentration without teaching the whole syllabus. Both ASUU and President Goodluck Jonathan are all lecturers (one in government and others still in the system. The same infrastructure if given to the Indian and Asian lecturers, they will use it to turn around the quality of education in this country, The fact is that ASUU has failed either as lecturer or as president. They should berry their head in shame. If the same Goodluck is not in government, he should have followed shameless colleagues to hold the country to ransom. Go and see the products of ICAN, CIBN and other professional examinations. The produce high quality associates (members) who studied in make shift environment but with committed lecturers. ASUU and its member called President Goodluck has failed this nation woefully
ReplyDeleteMr. Jonathan, it looks to me that you are losing your party base faster than normal, even by Nigerian standard. It is a cause for worry that before your very eyes, and in the presence of the most powerful members of your party, your governors talk down on you and dare you.
ReplyDeleteASUU has also dared you. CBN has dared you. EFCC, NNPC too. Do you still need anyone to tell you that the chicken is coming home to roost? Mr. 2015!
HMMMMM! Great country of CORRUPT LEADERS!
ReplyDeleteCOMMENT WILL BE VISIBLE AFTER APPROVAL! U MAY NOT APPROVE IT O BECAUSE YOU ARE AMONG OUR BAD EGGS THAT OUGHT TO BE DISPOSED! CORRUPT LEADERS EVERYWHERE EVEN IN OUR HOMES!
ReplyDelete