By Oyinkansayo Wole-Bodunde.
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), representing Nigerian university lecturers, has given the Nigerian government a 14-day deadline to meet its demands to prevent an impending strike.
This ultimatum was announced by ASUU President, Professor Emmanuel Osodeke, a Soil Science expert, in a recent statement.
The union had previously issued a 21-day strike warning on August 20, due to the government’s failure to address longstanding issues, particularly related to the 2009 Federal Government-ASUU agreement. That initial deadline passed on September 9.
To avert a strike, the Minister of Education, Professor Tahir Mamman, held two meetings with ASUU leaders on August 28 and September 6. A subcommittee was also established to review the union’s demands, though the results of these meetings remain unclear.
In a statement on Wednesday, ASUU revealed that a meeting was held on Thursday, September 19, to evaluate the government’s actions. The union expressed dissatisfaction with the government’s response.
The statement reads: “ASUU resolves to give the Nigerian Government another 14 days, in addition to the earlier 21 days, beginning from Monday, 23rd September 2024, during which all the lingering issues must have been concretely addressed to the satisfaction of the membership of the union.”
The union warned that it should not be blamed for any industrial unrest if the government fails to use this opportunity to resolve the crisis.
Professor Osodeke criticized the government’s failure to fully implement their demands, noting that this has worsened the situation in public universities. He emphasized that the recent wage increases of 25 and 35 percent for university workers are not a substitute for resolving the broader agreement, which was based on collective bargaining principles.
“In particular, the government’s failure to conclude the renegotiation of the FGN-ASUU Agreement that has lingered for upward of seven (7) years, and implement the agreement, has not helped matters especially given the current economic realities in the country,” he said.
ASUU also dismissed the government’s claims of insufficient funds, arguing that this was merely a lack of political will. They pointed out that the government’s fiscal position, contradicts its claims of financial limitations.
The union criticized the government for not prioritizing the welfare of Nigerian academics, stating that the prolonged negotiations should have already yielded positive results for industrial stability in universities.
“The substantial inflows from subsidy removal and devaluation of the Naira, translating to the humongous monthly Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) disbursements to the three tiers of government make nonsense of the outlandish claims,” the statement read.
ASUU also accused the government of employing “old tactics” such as bureaucratic delays, stalling, document denials, and a lack of budget provisions to complicate matters.
Key demands highlighted by Professor Osodeke include the renegotiation of the 2009 agreement, the release of salaries withheld during the 2022 strike, and the ongoing use of the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) for paying university workers.
Other pressing issues outlined by the ASUU president include: the payment of unpaid salaries for staff on sabbatical and part-time positions impacted by IPPIS; release of outstanding deductions like union dues and cooperative contributions; funding for university revitalization (included in the 2023 federal budget); payment of Earned Academic Allowances (EAA), also partly in the 2023 budget; the unchecked proliferation of universities by federal and state governments; implementation of visitation panel reports; unlawful dissolution of university governing councils; and the replacement of IPPIS with the University Transparency and Accountability Solution (UTAS).
The renegotiation of the 2009 FG-ASUU agreement, which addresses wage scales and other benefits for Nigerian academics, has been a longstanding source of conflict. Negotiations have stalled since 2017, with several different heads of negotiation, including Wale Babalakin and the late Nimi Briggs, though no agreement has been signed or implemented, leading to strikes such as the one in 2022.
ASUU continues to oppose the use of IPPIS for salary payments, calling it fraudulent and accusing it of shortchanging university staff. Although President Bola Tinubu had directed that universities be excluded from IPPIS, ASUU claims that a similar system is still being used.
Additionally, the union is demanding that the government act on the recommendations of visitation panels and amend the National Universities Commission (NUC) Act to prevent the unchecked proliferation of public universities.
