By Gabriel Dike
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) on Tuesday staged a protest against the Federal Government’s attitude towards the implementation of their outstanding demands and signing of the renegotiated agreement since May 2021.
ASUU Lagos Zone comprises of five universities, University of Lagos, Lagos State University, Olabisi Onabanjo University, Federal University of Agriculture, and Tai Solarin University of Education, staged the protest in UNILAG to draw the attention of Nigerians to their plight and the impending strike.
The protest which was approved at the Congress of ASUU Lagos Zone, took off from the Mass Communication Department to the Main Gate of UNILAG.
At the main gate of UNILAG, the Zonal Coordinator of ASUU Lagos Zone, Dr. Adelaja Adekoya, decried the Federal Government’s anti-knowledge posture and poor salary paid to Nigerian lecturers.
Adekoya explained that the National Executive Council (NEC) would meet in UNILAG this weekend and results of the mobilization and sensitization would be tabled for deliberation.
His words: “Whatever decision is taken, our zone will support NEC decision. Government have murdered sleep and we will not allow them to sleep too. This current struggle is about our conditions of service and non-signing of the concluded renegotiation since May 2021.”
On whether Nigerians should expect strike, the coordinator said the outcome of the NEC meeting will be known at the weekend.
He said the refusal of the Federal Government to sign and implement the renegotiated 2009 FG/ASUU agreement, adoption of the University Transparency and Accountability Solution (UTAS), funding of state universities, non-payment of withheld salaries, check-offs and promotion arrears.
“The union made concerted efforts at getting government to address these issues without satisfactory outcomes. We consider it our patriotic duty to call the attention of government and citizens of Nigeria to these issues threatening the industrial peace in our public universities at this critical period,” he stated.
On the renegotiated agreement, he said it was deliberately frustrated and delayed by the former chairman, Dr. Wale Babalakin and that the renegotiation was concluded in May 2021.
The union is however taken aback that since the conclusion of the renegotiation nine months ago, the government is yet to sign and implement the agreement.
Adekoya also decried the Federal Government failure to deploy UTAS in place of the failed Integrated Personnel Payroll Information System (IPPIS) and poor funding as well as infrastructural decay in state-owned universities.
The union called on government to review the laws of the National Universities Commission (NUC) to make it more stringent for the establishment of universities in the country.
Adekoya added: “Nigerians should hold government responsible if another industrial action hits our universities in not too long a distant time. We appeal to progressive individual and groups to prevail on the Nigerian government to arrest a brewing restive situation in the Nigerian University System before it degenerate into a serious crisis.”