The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has said there is no plan to end the ongoing strike expect the federal Government yields to their calls
ASUU President, Professor Emmanuel Osodeke ruled out any possibility of suspending its six months strike.
ASUU is demanding the government’s investment in the nation’s university infrastructure, and payment of members’ salaries through the University Transparency and Accountability Solution (UTAS), among other things.
Prof. Osodeke said the Minister of Labour and Employment, Mr Chris Ngige is creating more chaos in the resolution process despite their input. “ASUU, therefore, makes bold to say that the Minister of Labour and Employment has taken upon himself the role of unabashed protagonist in our ongoing dispute with the government of Nigeria for some inexplicable reasons.
“Dr Ngige earlier told whoever cared to listen that he was not the employer of university academics and advised the union to march to the Ministry of Education. Nigerians may wish to know why he has suddenly turned around to constitute himself into impediment to an amicable resolution of the ongoing crisis.
“The union said it remains focused on its goal of making the Nigerian University system internationally competitive and getting its products to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with their peers in any part of the world.
“We appreciate the teeming Nigerians for identifying with our vision in this respect and we specifically acknowledge the support and sacrifices of our students (including our members who are running their postgraduate programmes).
“We are as bothered as you are because we share a common interest in the Nigeria project, however, ASUU shall continue to be guided by the sacred canons of integrity, objectivity, and responsibility to which both academics and media practitioners subscribe. “It is our fervent hope and desire that the current groundswell of interests would culminate in a convergence of solutions to this avoidable crisis in the overall interest of Nigeria Together, we shall win. The struggle continues,” he said.
Written by James Favour