ASUU vs FG: 4 Convictions Gbajabiamila Presents To Union and When Students Will Return to Schools

• There are indications that ASUU might call off its 8-month-old industrial action this week, and students will start resuming next week
• This is due to the conviction that the union gets, in its latest meeting with the leadership of the house of representatives, that President Muhammadu Buhari has budgeted N300bn for the university revitalisation, N170bn for lecturer's salary increment, among others
• Following the hint that the union will call off its strike in days and not weeks, ASUU will be holding an NEC meeting on Thursday to decide on the suspension of the strike

Fresh facts have revealed how the house of representatives persuaded the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to review its position on its demands.

Read also

Your constant strike is “damaging to spirit of scholarship”, Atiku fires ASUU

According to The Nation, the leadership of the green chamber presented the fact sheet on the N20.5 trillion 2023 budget to the striking union’s representatives led by its national president, Emmanuel Osodeke.

Below are some of the agreements:

FG to spend N470 billion on public universities next year

The speaker of the lower chamber, Femi Gbajabiamila and other principal officers of the house showed concrete evidence to ASUU that the federal government has budgeted N470 billion to spend on public universities in 2023.

According to the source, the estimates for the N470bn include N300bn for revitalising universities and N170bn for salary adjustment

ASUU rejects plots to proscribe the union

The source also disclosed that the lecturers rejected the plot to proscribe the union from the government.

Read also

ASUU: Powerful northern governor discloses what FG can’t do hours after strike’s suspension

Recall that the government's recent registration of CONUA and NAMDA has been criticised by some analysts, noting that it is a plot to proscribe the union.

Conclusion on “no work, no pay policy”

The leadership of ASUU extracted the government’s commitment that it would pay part of the lecturers’ salaries and spread the rest over time.

The “no work, no pay policy” was invoked by the government after the union shunned the government’s plea to suspend the strike, which started on February 14.

ASUU concedes FG’s IPPIS

The source also revealed that the striking union finally accepted the integrated payroll and personnel information system (IPPIS) proposed by the federal government as against its university transparency accountability solution (UTAS).

However, the acceptance of IPPIS came with a clause that the platform would accommodate the peculiarities of the university system.

When will ASUU call off its strike?

The striking union will meet on Thursday, October 13, to make a final decision on the suspension of its 8-month-old industrial action.

Read also

ASUU suspends strike after eight months away from universities

According to Daily Trust, the union’s national executive council (NEC) member, who pleaded anonymity, made the revelation.

Legit.ng on Monday, October 10, reported that the lead counsel of ASUU in the case between the union and the FG at the national industrial court, Femi Falana, hinted that the lecturers will resume classrooms in “the next couple of days, not weeks”.

With the latest developments, it can be projected that ASUU will call off the 8-month-old strike before the end of this week, and students may start resuming next week.

Why 99.9% of ASUU strikes can’t pass scrutiny of law in Nigeria - Prominent law lecturer discloses

Legit.ng earlier reported that following the 7 months ASUU strike in Nigeria, Misbau Lateef, a law teacher from the University of Hull, disclosed to the medium that the strike is illegal.

Lateef, who taught law at Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, before moving to the United Kingdom, is the national legal adviser of CONUA, a breakaway group from ASUU.

The lecturer maintains that none of the strikes embarked on either by ASUU, NLC, or other unions can't pass the scrutiny of law in Nigeria because no strike is expected to last more than 5 days.

Source: Legit.ng