Follow Us on Google
From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
President Bola Tinubu has directed the federal government to do everything possible to end the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) strike, emphasising the importance of keeping Nigerian students in school.
Minister of Education Tunji Alausa made this disclosure after meeting with President Tinubu, reassuring the public that the government has met all of ASUU’s demands and that negotiations have resumed to resolve outstanding issues.
Alausa stated, “The President has mandated us that he doesn’t want ASUU to go on strike, and we’re doing everything humanly possible to ensure that our students stay in school.” He described the recent six-day strike as unnecessary, adding, “We’re talking to them. We’ve met literally all their requirements. Now we’ve gone back to the negotiation table. We’re talking as he spoke to the leadership this morning. We will resolve this.”
The Minister highlighted that his visit to the President was partly to update him on the status of the strike and to seek further concessions. He praised President Tinubu’s “fervent and benevolent love for education and human capital,” noting the government’s broader focus on human capital development through health, education, and social protection policies.
Alausa also addressed misconceptions about a supposed four-week ultimatum and government overfocus on ASUU, clarifying that the past fragmented negotiation approach—where separate committees dealt with universities (ASUU), polytechnics (ASUP), and colleges of education (COHESU)—has been streamlined. “We had one negotiating committee dealing with universities ASUU. We had another one dealing with Polytechnics, ASUP, and we had another one dealing with colleges of education COHESU, and they’re not talking to one another. What we’ve done now is to expand one single committee called Alhaji Yayale Ahmed federal government negotiating committee with tertiary institutions,” he explained.
Other News
This committee now handles negotiations with both academic and non-academic unions across universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education, promoting unified dialogue.
Alausa emphasised, “There is no ultimatum. I still spoke to the president of ASUP yesterday (Monday). I’m on first line call to them. Everything is calm, and they all understand this is a listening government. We would resolve all their problems, resolve significant part of their problems.”
The government’s commitment to dialogue follows recent standoffs where ASUU highlighted issues such as salary arrears, promotion arrears, and funding shortfalls as reasons for strike actions. The federal government insists these demands have been largely met and continues to push for industrial peace to protect academic calendars.
In addition to strike negotiations, the Tinubu administration has demonstrated strong governance and economic reforms, with GDP growth at 4.23%, removal of fuel subsidy abuses, introduction of new tax laws, and extensive infrastructure projects—all contributing to an environment supportive of educational and human capital development.
