ASUU may declare another round of strike.
– Steve Ovirih.
Industrial disharmony is brewing again in Nigerian ivory towers as university lecturers under the aegis of The Academic Staff Union of Universities ( ASUU) has given notice that by midnight of Friday , the 11th of February, its members across Nigerian universities will down tools if by then their demands are not met.
In an address to the press by the University of Lagos ASUU branch chairman on Tuesday, Dr. ‘Laja Odukoya said calling out the lecturers to down tools is quite imminent , stressing that government by its body language has shown lack of readiness to grant the request of the union. He said the major issues of ASUU’s agitations , the 2009 agreement and payment of earned allowances have continued to be ignored by Federal government as the government has employed all the delayed tactics in the book to renege on its promises to the body.
The body said the Federal Government has resolved to make university lecturers poor by denying them their rights and paying lip service to all the agitations and demand of the university lecturers hence the need to go back to the drawing board and down tools since government has continued to owe them #880 billion revitalization fund while their earned allowances were not provided for in the 2022 budget even when government had given its word that the earned allowances will be factored into the budget.
At another Congress of ASUU held at The University of Ibadan, UI ASUU Chairman, Prof. Akinwole noted that government has delayed for long the implementation of the renegotiation of 2009 both ASUU and government agreed on , stressing that the union is tired of promises government is not ready to keep.
ASUU says it is appealing to all well meaning Nigerians to call government attention to their notice of strike as they will not hesitate to embark on the strike if the set time given lapses.
