The Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, has demanded immediate dissolution of the governing councils of universities recently announced by the federal government.
Members of the Nnamdi Azikiwe University branch of ASUU, who took to the streets with placards on Tuesday, urged President Bola Tinubu to reverse the decision, arguing that due process was not followed in the appointments.
UNIZIK ASUU chairman, Comrade Kingsley Uboji, who addressed
reporters after marching round the university, also urged the president to
implement the renegotiated 2009 ASUU/FG agreement.
Uboji said: “Our union condemns the dissolution of the
former governing councils without due process. Governing councils are crucial
for the governance and strategic direction of our universities. Therefore, the
illegal and arbitrary dissolution of the governing council whose tenures have
not ended undermines Nigerian universities’ autonomy and smooth functioning.
“This cannot be tolerated as it lays a very bad precedence.
Even the membership of the said newly reconstituted councils is problematic. A critical look at
the list of the newly constituted governing councils shows that it is made up
of very old politicians who do not understand the academic system and its
administrative processes.
“Our public universities should not be a retirement home for
politicians. We therefore call on the Tinubu-led government to do the needful by reversing its
decision on the university governing councils dissolution.”
He lamented that the administration of President Tinubu is
yet to engage ASUU fully, to address all outstanding issues decisively on the
2009 agreement with the federal government.
Essentially, he called for the renegotiation of the 2009
FGN/ASUU agreement and implementation of the Prof. Nimi Briggs report, funding
for the revitalisation of public universities based on the FGN-ASUU MoU of
2012, 2013, and the MoA of 2017, release of the 3½ months of the withheld
salaries, payment of Earned Academic Allowance, EAA.
The union also demanded release of unpaid staff salaries on
sabbatical and adjunct due to IPPIS, release of third-party deductions,
implementation of UTAS in place of IPPIS and implementation of the reports of
the university visitation panels.
He added: “As you are aware, many of these issues have
outlived successive governments without any resolution, and other issues have
been created by consecutive governments as well, like the implementation of the
IPPIS, which came with the Muhammadu Buhari administration.
“Historically, the government has made commitments and
signed agreements with ASUU, detailing timelines and expectations of both
parties aimed at developing the Nigerian Universities as conditions for
suspending any strike action.
“But as soon as lecturers resumed work, the government and
other stakeholders returned to status quo. ASUU would again start writing
letters and reminders to the government, which were most often ignored,
resulting in another strike action by ASUU.
“The 2009 FGN/ASUU agreement has been a recurrent decimal in
all ASUU industrial actions. No government had taken the renegotiation
seriously, but during the life of the past administration, negotiation came to
a conclusion with the Nimi Briggs Committee.
“A document was produced, but the minions in the corridors
of power refused to pass it on to the then President for his consideration and
approval.
“Since then, no tangible outcome has been recorded in spite
of the constructive recommendations of the Committee. Our union, therefore,
demands that all renegotiations of the 2009 FGN/ASUU agreement be rounded off based on the Nimi
Briggs Committee resolutions.”
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