The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has advocated the repositioning of universities in Nigeria, positing that they should be able to compare favourably with their peers anywhere in the world.
The Union took this position during a press conference held at the end of the National Executive Council (NEC) meeting, which came up at Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State on May 11 to 12, 2024, read by its President, Professor Emmanuel Osodeke.
It took a critical look at the worsening living and working conditions in the nation’s universities and the nation at large.
The foremost academic union lamented that there were no significant steps taken by the government to address the lingering issues that forced the Union to embark on the nationwide strike of February to October 2022.
“NEC sadly noted that there were no serious efforts to redress the ugly situation,” said the Union, expressing that it called the conference to intimate the press and Nigerians of the grim situation the nation’s universities have been grappling with.
It regretted that the former Minister of Labour, Dr Chris Ngige, truncated the years of government’s engagements with the Union at the point of signing a negotiated agreement in 2021.
ASUU accused the government of refusing to approve the draft agreement of 2009, calling on the Tinubu-led government to immediately set in motion the process leading to the review and signing of the Nimi Briggs-led renegotiated draft agreement.
ASUU wanted the government to restate governing councils whose tenures were yet to lapse, and reconstitute those whose tenures have lapsed.
As part of its demand, government should revert to quarterly releases of universities funds to enable the institutions design and implement their salary payment plans under the supervision of governing councils.
ASUU wanted the government to address the issue of underfunding, urging the President to refrain from further proliferation of universities, as it vowed that it would explore all legal means to resist the pervasive moves by politicians to keep proliferating universities.
It called on the government to direct the immediate release of all outstanding deductions, unpaid promotion arrears and salaries of university academics which were unjustly withheld by what it referred to as corruption-ridden Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS).
ASUU promised to reconvene after two weeks from the date of the NEC meeting to review the situation and decide on the next line of action.
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