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Tag: Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU)

  • Lecturers Demand Conclusion of FGN/ASUU Re-negotiation Agreement

    Lecturers Demand Conclusion of FGN/ASUU Re-negotiation Agreement

    By Milcah Tanimu

    Public university lecturers in Nigeria have remained on the same salary schedule since 2009, a period when the naira-dollar exchange rate was N120, according to the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).

    Speaking at a press conference in Abraka, Delta State, Professor Monday Igbafe, the Benin zonal president of ASUU, highlighted the unresolved issue surrounding the FGN/ASUU Re-negotiation Agreement of 2009, which has been in draft form since 2021.

    Igbafe expressed concern over the stagnation of salaries for lecturers, stating that the current remuneration is significantly undervalued, with a professor earning approximately $400 per month in today’s Nigeria.

    He emphasized that the key demand from ASUU is the conclusion of the re-negotiation of the 2009 FGN/ASUU agreement. Igbafe noted the prolonged delay in finalizing this agreement, which commenced in 2017 and reached a draft stage in 2021 under the Professor Briggs-led Committee.

    However, the draft agreement has yet to be approved by the government, with the former Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr. Chris Ngige, allegedly playing a role in obstructing its approval.

    Igbafe stressed the importance of concluding and implementing the renegotiated agreement to address the deteriorating living and working conditions of university staff, as well as the funding challenges and governance issues facing public universities in Nigeria.

    He called on the government, under the leadership of President Tinubu, to prioritize the review and signing of the renegotiated draft agreement to demonstrate seriousness and provide hope for Nigerian academics and public universities.

    Warning against further delays, Igbafe asserted that any procrastination on this matter would invite crisis within the academic sector.

    Furthermore, Igbafe criticized the recurring trend of illegal dissolution of governing councils in public universities, highlighting the negative impact on university governance and policies. He cited Ambrose Alli University (AAU), Ekpoma, as an example of a state university where the absence of a governing council for three years has led to disruptions in university operations and governance.

  • Muslim Students Urge Tinubu to Prevent ASUU Strike During His Tenure

    Muslim Students Urge Tinubu to Prevent ASUU Strike During His Tenure

    The Muslim Students Society of Nigeria (MSSN) has appealed to President Bola Tinubu to prioritize education and ensure that Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and other education unions do not embark on strikes during his tenure. The call was made by Miftaudeen Thanni, the immediate past Amir of MSSN in Lagos, during the society’s Annual Conference held at the University of Lagos.

    Thanni emphasized the importance of investing in the education sector, stating that it is not a luxury but a necessity. He urged the government to pay more attention to education, youth empowerment, security, economic development, and infrastructure. The aim is to avoid future strikes by investing more in the education system.

    Thanni further highlighted that investing in education contributes to peace as educated individuals are more likely to embrace dialogue, reject extremism, and seek peaceful resolutions to conflicts. Niyi Yusuf, the Chairman of the Nigeria Economic Summit Group (NESG), encouraged MSSN members to unite and focus on education to revive the prosperous era of Islam. He referred them to study the ‘Golden Age of Islam,’ which reflects a time when Muslims were leaders of the world.

    The MSSN’s appeal to Tinubu is an effort to ensure that education remains a priority and to prevent disruptions caused by strikes in the future, fostering stability and progress in Nigeria’s educational system.

  • FG agrees to Pay ASUU N30bn before November 6

    FG agrees to Pay ASUU N30bn before November 6

    The Federal Government has promised to pay the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) N30bn on or before November 6, 2020, as part of the pending Earned Academic Allowance (EAA) of University teachers.

    This was the outcome of the ongoing dialogue between the Federal Government and ASUU.

    At the meeting on Thursday, the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige, said that Government has pledged to pay the sum of N40 billion.

    He explained that out of that amount, N30 billion would be paid on or before 6th November, while the remaining N10 billion would be spread equally over two tranches to be paid on May 2021 and February 2022.

    “The Government’s commitment to pay was in response to the demand by ASUU for the payment of two tranches of EAA which cumulate to N40 billion that has become overdue since November 2019.”

    The minister said that though the Federal Government agreed to fulfil its financial obligations to ASUU members, particularly outstanding salaries and earned allowances, the parties could not agree on the mode of payment.

    “The government’s side appealed to ASUU to enroll on the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) platform in the meantime, and migrate back to the University Transparency and Accountability Solution (UTAS) after its efficacy had been proven through the necessary integrity tests. The Union refused, insisting on being exempted from IPPIS.

    “The meeting also agreed that if UTAS passes all the different stages of the integrity test, which would involve the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and the Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA), and after ascertaining its efficacy, it would be adopted for the payment of the University staff.”

    Dr Ngige further revealed that the government also offered to pay, by the end of January 2021, the sum of N20 billion as funding for the revitalization of public universities, as well as seek for sources of alternative and additional funding of the university system, among other conclusions.

    Earlier, the Minister had expressed a belief that the series of recent meetings, including the one convened on Tuesday by the Senate President, and activities such as the integrity test on UTAS done on Wednesday, would all culminate in the resolution of the crisis.

    “At the meeting with the Senate President, we agreed on a work plan to achieve full conciliation so that students would go back to school.

    “With the work done so far, both at the meeting with the Senate President and at the test run of the UTAS done at the Accountant-General’s office on Wednesday, we believe we will be able to break the ice.”

    He explained that UTAS was designed strictly for the University system and could only be applied there, emphasising that Government never said it would use it to replace IPPIS.

    “The situation is that the University system developed and configured UTAS to accommodate the peculiarities of that system as it affects the academic and even the non-academic staff.”

    The Minister added that the government’s condition for considering UTAS as a suitable payment system for the University has always been that it would necessarily undergo three stages of the integrity test.

    He disclosed that the first leg of the test had been done on Wednesday, while the two remaining stages would be done subsequently.

    Also speaking, the president of ASUU, Professor Biodun Ogunyemi, appealed to Government to treat the matter as a national emergency, as the Education sector needed urgent intervention.

    “Education is in serious crisis; university education in particular needs urgent intervention. Unless it gets that, it would be difficult to achieve the desired stability in the system.”

    He commended the government’s efforts towards a speedy resolution of the crisis and hoped that the process, which parties to the dispute had embarked on, would ultimately lead to a satisfactory solution.

    Present at the meeting were the Minister of State, Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo, SAN; Executive Chairman, National Salaries, Income and Wages Commission, Ekpo Nta; Permanent Secretary, Labour and Employment, Dr Yerima Peter Tarfa, among others.

    The meeting will be continued on Wednesday, 21st October to enable the leadership to consult their organs on the conclusions reached at this last meeting.

  • ASUU strike still ongoing till FG intervenes – Ogunyemi

    ASUU strike still ongoing till FG intervenes – Ogunyemi

    The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has debunked reports that its ongoing strike has been suspended.

    ASUU reacted to the #ASUUResumes trend on Twitter.

    Clarifying the reports via its Twitter handle, said, “Contrary to speculations making the rounds in the social media that the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, has called off strike, nothing of such is true.

    “If we are going to call off our strike, there is a process that will be followed and nothing of such has been done.”

    Also, ASUU’s president, Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi, had vowed that the union would sustain its ongoing strike action until the Federal Government addresses all its demands.

    Ogunyemi said ASUU was asking the Federal Government to implement the 2012 universities’ needs assessment.

    Ogunyemi stated, “Salary issues are still there; we have not fully addressed that. It appears that some forces in government are bent on making our members to suffer by withholding their salaries. But we believe that once we sort out the issues of the Universities’ Transparency and Accountability Solution, other issues will fall in place.

    “The 2009 agreement we had with the government stipulates that that agreement will be reviewed every three years, but since then, we have not been able to review the salary scale.

    “That is why we are saying that the negotiation we started with the government in 2017 ought to have been completed and with the completion of that negotiation process, a new salary scale should be in place.

    “We are insisting that the process is completed before this ongoing strike is suspended among other things.”