The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has threatened to shut down all private universities across the country should the 9-month strike embarked upon by members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) continues.
According to a report from Punch, this disclosure was made by the new President of NANS, Sunday Asefon, while speaking on a Punch Online interview programme, The Roundtable.
READ: FG should release all what is due to ASUU without the conditionality of IPPIS- ASUU
Asefon, who lamented that the ongoing strike, which is the longest industrial action embarked upon by the university lecturers, said that NANS would get into a discussion with the Federal Government representatives and ASUU leaders to find a lasting solution to resolve the stalemate in negotiations between the 2 sides.
READ: FG offers N65 billion to ASUU, N15 billion revitalization fund to end strike
However, the NANS President pointed out that if the strike action is not called off as soon as possible after consultations with both parties, the association will be left with no option but to move in and shut down all tertiary institutions in the country.
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What you should know
- The members of ASUU have been on strike since March 2020 due to conflict with the Federal Government over some unpaid allowances and the implementation of the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS), which the union opposes.
- However, following the offer by the government to increase the funds for Earned Allowances and funding for the revitalization of public universities from N65 billion to N70 billion, the union leaders accepted the offer and agreed to convey the message to their various organ before reporting back to the government.
- The union insisted that all withheld salaries and outstanding allowances must be paid and not through the IPPIS platform before they can call off the strike.
- A meeting between Federal Government representatives and leaders of ASUU which was scheduled to hold today, Wednesday, December 9, 2020, has been postponed indefinitely by the union as they claimed the time frame given to them to consult with their members is too short.
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