ASUU Set To Meet, Deliberate Over Strike Decision
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) is scheduled to discuss the choice to end its eight-month strike.
This was revealed to Channels Television by Emmanuel Osodeke, President of the ASUU, in a discussion on Tuesday.
Prof. Osodeke did not specify when the meeting would be held, but according to reports, voting would occur between Tuesday and Wednesday.
Typically, decisions are put to a vote in ASUU branches around the country; the results are then sent to the National Executive Council of ASUU for final approval.
Following orders from the National Industrial Court and the Court of Appeal for the union to return to the classroom, ASUU is now deliberating.
Many anticipate that the union will call off the strike, allowing students at public colleges around the nation to return to classes.
ASUU’s legal representative, Femi Falana, hinted that the strike might soon come to an end in an interview with Channels Television on Monday.
Mr. Falana declared that the legal counsel he provided to his clients was private and confidential. However, I can guarantee that the strike will be called off soon.
The union also met with Femi Gbajabiamila, Speaker of the House of Assembly, on Monday.
At the meeting, ASUU President Osodeke stated, “We hope that working together, in the coming days, we will put a stop to this particular imbroglio in the Nigerian educational system.”
ASUU’s Demand
ASUU has commence the ongoing strike since February 14, 2022.
Because the government had not properly complied with its demands, the union said in August that it would extend its industrial action “completely and indefinitely.”
Among other requests, the academics want better welfare, the revitalization of public universities, and academic autonomy.
The non-payment of university revitalization funds, which total roughly N1.1 trillion, is one point of discontent among academics.
However, the Federal Government has asserted that it lacks the resources to make such a payment, citing the low oil prices experienced during President Muhammadu Buhari’s watch.
President Buhari stated a total of N470 billion has been set aside for revitalization and salary increases in the country’s higher institutions, addressing some of the primary demands of ASUU, in his presentation of the 2023 budget earlier this month.
