ASUU asks Buhari to direct Osinbajo to take over negotiations, loses confidence in ministers

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to direct Vice President Yemi Osinbajo to take over its negotiations with the Federal Government as the Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu, and the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige, have been unable to make it work.

The call by the labour union is coming two days after Vice President Osinbajo at the commemoration of international workers’ day, urged ASUU to embrace dialogue with the federal government to end the ongoing strike action and asked the NLC and TUC to facilitate truce with the government.

This disclosure is contained in a tweet post by ASUU on its official Twitter account on Tuesday May 3, 2022.

This is as the Minister of State for Education, Emeka Nwajiuba, in a message urged ASUU to trust the federal government, suspend its strike action before negotiations will continue.

Osinbajo had said that the government is not unmindful of the anxieties of the children and their parents and urged the broader labour community to facilitate a dialogue.

He noted that both the government and the union are members of the same progressive family, adding that dialogue is the only path to resolution.

Meanwhile, ASUU, had in a report a few days ago accused the Federal Government of using the no-work-no-pay policy as a ploy to make lecturers go hungry, and force them to resume work.

ASUU President, Professor Emmanuel Osodeke, had maintained that the FG would not be able to overwhelm its striking members with its recent action.

What you should know

• ASUU, had on February 14, embarked on a 4-week total and comprehensive strike to press home their unresolved demands on the federal government.
• Some of the lecturers’ demands include funding for the revitalisation of public universities, payment of earned academic allowances, adoption of the University Transparency Accountability Solution (UTAS) as a preferred payment option, instead of the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) and payment of promotion arrears.
• Others are the renegotiation of the 2009 ASUU-FGN Agreement, and the resolution of inconsistencies in the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS).
• The union on March 14, extended the industrial action by another 2 months, hinging it on the lack of seriousness on the part of the federal government to address the issues.
• Several attempts at negotiations between the union and the federal government have proven futile with both sides accusing each other of insincerity and unseriousness.