of Universities, including the University
of Ibadan and Ahmadu Bello University
chapters, have voted for the suspension
of the strike by the union during
chapter congresses held nationwide.
The union met with a Federal
Government team led by President
Goodluck Jonathan last Tuesday in
Abuja.
Government has promised to inject
N220bn yearly into the public
universities for the next five years.
The ASUU leadership, after briefing the
zonal coordinators on the offer, had
directed the local branches to organise
congress meetings between Friday last
week and Tuesday (today).
This is to enable all the lecturers to
make input into the action the union
would take after its NEC meeting on
Thursday.
As at press time on Monday, 20 of the
28 chapters that had concluded their
meetings supported the suspension of
the strike, while the remaining eight
preferred that the varsity teachers
pressed on with the strike.
The teachers in the University of Abuja,
for instance, supported the suspension
of the strike but listed conditions that
must be met by the Federal
Government.
A source at the meeting on Monday said
the congress demanded that the
withheld three months salaries of the
lecturers must be paid.
"Members also demanded for
commitment on funding. We also want
assurance from government that no
lecturer will be victimised on the
account of participating in the strike. We
also asked that the template for sharing
the earned allowance should be
prepared within the next two weeks,"
the source added.
The conditions were the same for
Nasarawa State University, which voted
for continuation of the strike.
Chairman of ASUU in the school, Dr.
Theophilus Lagi, told our correspondent
after the congress that as far as his
members were concerned the strike
should continue.
He said, "There are certain grey areas
that must be cleared. The 'no work no
pay' policy must be sorted out.
Government must pay lecturers the
arrears.
"We also need evidence that the
N200bn that government promised to
release this year is in the central bank.
We are not going to suspend the strike
until the money is there and available
for sourcing. That is the position of the
congress.
"Nobody trusts government. They have
been making promises since 2009 and
nothing has been implemented except
the N30bn earned allowances.
"Secondly, the 2009 agreement is due
for review; nothing has been said about
that. Lecturers have been denied salary
for three months, those monies must be
paid."
Among the universities that supported
that the strike be called off are Ahmadu
Bello University, Zaria; Federal
University of Technology, Minna;
University of Lagos; University of
Ibadan; University of Calabar; University
of Port-Harcourt; Federal University of
Technology, Akure; Usmanu Danfodiyo
University, Sokoto; and Ekiti State
University.
The list also include the Federal
University of Technology, Owerri; Delta
State University; Bayero University
Kano; Imo State University; Federal
University of Agriculture, Abeokuta; and
Olabisi Onabanjo University, among
others.
On the other hand, majority of lecturers
at the University of Benin; and
University of Jos wanted the strike to
continue.
However, in the Bauchi zone of the
union, five universities voted for
continuation of the state strike, while
the remaining three threw their weight
against the continuation of the strike.
Source: http://www.punchng.com/news/ui-abu-others-support-suspension-of-asuu-strike/
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