5 Months ASUU Strike: After Issuing Ultimatum to Minister Adamu, Buhari Gives Ngige 1 Last Order
- The minister of labour and employment, Chris Ngige has been asked to step down from the negotiations between the Federal Government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities
- The decision for Ngige to step down was made by President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday, July 19
- According to President Buhari, the minister of education Adamu Adamu should take over the ongoing negotiator process
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President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday, July 19, ordered the minister of labour and employment, Chris Ngige to step down from the ongoing negotiations with the leadership of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
Premium Times reports that the order was handed to the minister during a briefing by the heads of various concerned ministries, departments and agencies of government.
Source: UGC
The president also directed the minister of education, Adamu Adamu, to take over the negotiations with the striking lecturers and ensure that the issues are resolved within the next two weeks so that students can resume their studies.
Buhari's directive to Ngige followed complaints by Adamu at the gathering that the reason behind his prolonged silence on the matter is because Ngige as the minister of labour and employment had been the only one with the mandate to negotiate with the striking unions since 2016.
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The complaint by Adamu is a sequel to the blame game between ASUU and Ngige with the union accusing the minister of labour and employment of complicating the crisis and making resolution difficult.
A source who was at the briefing with the president however said that Buhari never ordered the education minister to address the ASUU crisis within two weeks.
The source said:
“The President never directed the education minister to end the strike in two or three weeks. It was the minister himself who hinted at a possibility of an end to the crisis between two and three weeks.
“But the education minister said he distanced himself from the negotiations following the position taken sometime in 2016 or thereabouts when a similar issue arose and the labour minister said it was his duty to take over negotiation and quoted some ILO provisions.”
ASUU strike: Finally, President Buhari intervenes as varsity resumption edges closer
The resumption of University students across the federations looks imminent with new development in sight.
President Muhammadu Buhari has decided to wade into the matter to proffer a lasting solution to the disagreement between FG and ASUU.
It is believed that the federal government has agreed to an upward salary review of up to 100 per cent for the striking lecturers.
ASUU accuse labour minister of misleading Buhari over ongoing strike
In another development, the chairman of ASUU, Professor Emmanuel Osodeke had laid a serious allegation on the labour minister, Chris Ngige over the ongoing strike.
Prof. Osodeke said Ngige had been misleading President Muhammadu Buhari over the strike which clocked 5 months on Thursday, July 14.
The union however said it has no knowledge of the figures making the rounds about negotiations.
Source: Legit.ng
