Prepare for another strike – ASUU declares

The Federation Government’s refusal to abide by agreements agreed with the Academic Staff Union of Universities has prompted the union to warn that its members are about to go on a complete strike.

The Federal Executive Council (FEC) ordered ASUU to be removed from the payment platform, but certain subversive persons were insisting on using the Integrated Personnel Payment Information System (IPPIS) to defy this instruction, which they described as the basis for the upcoming strike.

The ASUU-Nzukka Zone Chairman, Comrade Raphael Amokaha, addressed the media on Friday in Makurdi. He read aloud from a statement headed “Averting a Crisis,” emphasizing that those who were committed to subvert the FEC’s mandate had developed the Government Integrated Financial Management System, or GIFMIS, instead of embracing the homegrown University Transparency Accountability Solutions, UTAS, offered free to the government.

He said: “it can be inferred from observations that the people that are benefitting from IPPIS are not ready to let go of the federal universities for their pecuniary benefits hence the transformation from IPPIS to new IPPIS and now GIFMIS. We urge the government to immediately fish out those behind this recalcitrant rent seeking and bring them to book.”

The union also decried the failure of the government to release the balance of the eight months withheld salaries of ASUU members likewise the non-payment of Earned Academic Allowances, EAA, and other emoluments and entitlements to its members.

While acknowledging the reconstitution of the Governing Councils of Universities by the Federal Government, the Union frowned at the illegal dissolution of some of the Councils that were yet to complete their tenure saying “the failure to reinstate these councils has added to the list of contentious issues.”

ASUU also wondered why the government had failed to honour its agreements with the union citing “the 2009 Agreement the government entered with the union through collective bargaining which had been completely neglected by the government after setting up several negotiation teams to reach a middle ground.

“It is our sincere hope that the President Tinubu-led government will be different especially as he promised Nigerians in his acceptance speech that there will be no more strikes in our universities.

“We are on the verge of a strike now! Mr. President may, therefore, wish to ensure that the impending action is averted in keeping with his promise to the Nigerian people, by directing the immediate signing of the draft agreement and implementation of the of the contents therein.”

The union called for adequate funding for the both state and federal universities pointing out that “as far back as 1992, it has been the position of our union that both the federal and state governments should allocate at least 26 percent of their annual budget to education as prescribed by UNESCO.

“The union has consistently appealed to government to adopt a gradual approach in attaining this UNESCO prescribed minimum budgetary allocation to Education. The NEEDS Assessment Fund, which was an interim intervention, intended to inject N1.3 trillion over six years into the public university sector has been unable to attain this objective.”

ASUU lamented that the “government of President Bola Tinubu is about to celebrate one year in office. Unfortunately, members of our union do not share in the elation of one year celebration. Our expectations were much higher than the present reality. Again, we cry out to the President, let the lecturers breath! Do not suffocate us.”