Federal University

Coalition of Northern Groups (CNG) students’ wing urged the urgent resignation of Education Minister Adamu Adamu on Thursday, accusing him of failing to bring the ongoing strike by members of Academic Staff Union of Nigerian Universities to a successful conclusion.

According to the students, the Federal Government appeared to be unconcerned about their future or the harmful consequences of the strikes on their daily lives.

Specifically, the students asserted that the administration, and in especially the Minister of Education, lacked the political will, the competence, and the motivation to put a stop to the situation, and that as a result, he should step down immediately.

Those affiliated with the Coalition’s student wing have stated that if the government is unable to find an immediate solution to the strike, their members will join forces with the National Association of Nigerian Students to organize a “National Day of Action” to force a complete shutdown of the country’s educational institutions.

“The students’ wing of the Coalition of Northern Groups is concerned that the four-week warning strike declared by the Academic Staff Union of Universities is already in its third week, with no prospect of a resolution in sight, while our universities remain closed,” according to an excerpt from an address by their National Coordinator, Jamilu Charanchi.

We are worried about the regularity with which the Nigerian education system is disrupted, as it continues to frustrate the desires and aspirations of young people to learn new skills and information.

“Unfortunately, this is the second industrial action initiated by the ASUU in less than two years, and the 16th since the establishment of the fourth republic democracy in 1999,” says the statement.

“If the government fails to settle the situation within the time frame specified, the CNG Students’ wing will join forces with NANS to bring the nation to a complete halt.”

Accordingly, we urge all National Excos, State structures, campus structures, Faculty Senators, and Departmental Ambassadors to begin enormous public mobilization in preparation for an upcoming National Day.

The leadership of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) met with Chris Ngige, Minister of Labour, earlier this week, and it appears like the strike may be coming to an end shortly.

As a result of this development, the academic union has chosen to provide its members with information on the meetings’ specifics.

The current government suggestion, on the other hand, may pave the way for a possible agreement between the union and other interested parties in the future.

There is a possibility that the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) will be able to put off the one-month warning strike action that they have initiated.

In light of a lengthy, closed-door discussion with the Nigerian government, the leadership of the academic union said that its team will report back to the members on the government’s suggestions and then revert to the Nigerian government.

Premium Times said that the minister of labor and employment, Chris Ngige, stated that both parties had reached an agreement on a number of issues and that ASUU was anticipated to meet with its members and provide them with the government’s proposal in order to call off the strike.

The Earned Academic Allowances (EAA) program and the creation of a university revitalization fund were the two topics on the agenda for Tuesday’s meeting.

Timetables have been established.

In an interview with The Punch, Ngige stated that while the majority of ASUU’s requests have been met, the remaining issues are also being handled.

He stated, “I’m not going to lie, I’m not going to lie.”

“As I mentioned to you the previous time, a lot of the items have already been dealt with thoroughly, and some of them are still in the process of being dealt with.”

Source: Legit.ng

Dr Chris Ngige, Minister of Labour and Employment, has provided an update on the continuing negotiations between the Federal Government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU). He provided the information while addressing to State House media following a meeting with President Barack Obama, according to his office.

The President, he explained, had authorized him to find a swift solution to the strike after consulting with all stakeholders, including the National Inter-Religious Council (NIREC).

He stated that a meeting with ASUU has taken place, with another scheduled for Tuesday. He also stated that the only two areas where difficulties have not been thoroughly investigated are earned allowances and revitalization, but that timeframes have been established for the majority of the other issues.

He stated that a deadline had been set for the completion of the draft proposal that the union had submitted to the Ministry of Education on their working conditions and salaries.

Upon submission of the report by the relevant committee, which is chaired by the chair of pro-chancellors, the minister stated that it will be reviewed in conjunction with the National Salaries and Wages Commission to ensure that the allowances so proposed do not conflict with existing government policies.

The Federal Government, according to Ngige, has so far paid over N92 billion in earned allowances and revitalization fees to federally owned colleges across the nation. As part of the implementation of the December 2020 deal signed with the ASUU, he stated that this will take place.

The Minister stated that the issue of the adoption of the University Transparency and Accountability Solution payment platform, which is chosen by the ASUU over the government’s Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System, will be reconsidered.

In their report to ASUU, they pointed out the areas of lapses in that platform, which will not make it usable as it is currently configured,” they said. “UTAS, which the universities developed, has been subjected to testing by the body responsible for that, Nigeria Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), which ran a user acceptance test, also known as integrity and vulnerability test.”

“However, ASUU has written back to NITDA to point out that some of their findings were incorrect,” he explained further.

It has now been agreed upon that the technical teams from NITDA and ASUU would meet in order to jointly conduct or rerun the test on the UTAS platform, in order to find a way out of the deadlock, according to Ngige.

The meeting to restore industrial Harmony between the Federal Government and the Academic Staffs Union of Universities has officially ended with no agreement reached.

The meeting, which began at around 1:00pm in the Minister’s Conference Room, has concluded.

The Academic Staff Union of Universities emphasized during the conference that it will continue its strike until the Federal Government met all previous demands.

However, the Federal Government hopes the current strike will be called off shortly, stating that it was caught aback by the second walkout initiated by university instructors on February 14, 2022.

Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, stated during Tuesday’s resumed conciliation meeting with the union that government was surprised ASUU rejected the understanding and assurances it provided through the Nigerian Inter-Religious Council (NIREC) led by the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar, and the Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria, Rev. Supo Ayokunle.

According to the Minister, who was in Botswana for the African Regional Labour Administrative Centre’s (ARLAC) conference at the time ASUU initiated strike action, he believed the university instructors and their employer, the Ministry of Education, would address the areas of contention within days.

“I had hoped that ASUU and the Ministry of Education would settle the concerns, which are presumably not significant enough to require industrial action. To my amazement, I returned and saw that the strike had continued. Whatever the case may be, my Ministry’s responsibility is to apprehend industrial conflicts wherever they occur, and we have apprehended this one.

” As a result of today’s dialogue, ASUU will understand that the government wishes no harm. This is because, even if there are still gaps in the agreement’s execution, they are not sufficient to justify industrial action. To that extent, we must make every effort to address this.

However, I must inform you that the administration was caught aback by the fact that NIREC had previously met with you (ASUU) and reported to the President. We truly hope that after meeting with you (ASUU) and providing information of their meeting with you, we would refrain from taking this road of industrial action in the future. Thus, the government is taken aback—the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Finance, and everyone else is taken aback.”

Ngige, on the other hand, stated that his ministry had comprehended the strike and that the continuing mediation process would pave the way for an extended meeting that would include NIREC.

“It is my job to apprehend industrial issues, and this one has been apprehended so that we may discuss and, if necessary, extend to a tripartite plus meeting comprising members of NIREC who are senior religious and traditional rulers.” And that is as soon as we are through here and have reached an agreement on topics.”

The minister expressed confidence that the strike will be called off in the near future, allowing students to return to class.

“The strike should not be limited to one month. Indeed, in labor, there is no such thing as a one-month strike or a warning strike. The strike is the strike. We want this to stop as soon as possible while we iron out any remaining ambiguities in the agreement, as the ILO Principles At Work permit revision of Collective Bargaining Agreements. As a result, we return to the draft agreement. We must avoid another circumstance in which our children suffer the weight of a conflict between two elephants,” he continued.