ASUU agreed to end strike today – FG

We have delivered our promises to ASUU.

The Federal Government has faulted the the Academic Staff Union of Universities for refusing to end the strike, adding that it has delivered on offers made to the unions.

The Minister for Labour, Chris Ngige said this in reaction to the claim by the President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, Prof Biodun Ogunyemi, that the government had failed to deliver on offers made to the union.

Senator Ngige, on Tuesday, however, revealed in a statement that ASUU agreed at their last meeting with the government team on November 27 to call off their nine-month-old strike before December 9.

“The truth of the matter is that a ‘gentleman agreement’ was reached at the last meeting in which ASUU agreed to call off the strike before December 9, 2020, and the minister, in turn, agreed that once the strike is called off, he would get a presidential waiver for ASUU to be paid the remainder of their salaries on or before December 9,” Ngige stated.

Ngige said it was false and discomfiting for ASUU to wrongly inform the public that the government agreed to pay all withheld salaries before it would resume work, stressing that the timelines attached to the various offers made to the union had been complied with.

The minister stated, “The N40b Earned Academic Allowances have also been processed just as the N30bn revitalisation funds, bringing it to N70bn. Likewise, the visitation panels for the universities have been approved by the President but the panel cannot perform its responsibilities until the shut universities are re-opened.

“The gazetting is also being rounded off at the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation while the Ministry of Education is ready to inaugurate the various visitation panels.”

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