Nigerian students in public universities have to continue staying at home while their pairs in private universities continue learning.
This is as the meeting between ASUU and the federal government on Tuesday, August 16, ended without an agreement.
Among other demands, the lecturers’ union is asking for payment of university revitalisation funds, which amounts to about N1.1 trillion
The meeting between the leadership of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and the federal government on Tuesday, August 16, has again ended without an agreement.
This implies that the six-month-old strike by public university lecturers is set to continue.
According to Channels TV, the union on Tuesday met with the Professor Nimi Briggs Committee at the National University Commission (NUC) in Abuja with high hopes of resolving the impasse.
A senior member of ASUU whose name was not revealed was cited as saying that members of the Briggs renegotiation committee did not come with any new offer on the table.
The ASUU source said the committee instead pleaded with the lecturers to suspend the ongoing strike, with promises that their concerns will be included in the 2023 budget.
According to the source, the meeting, which started at about 12pm, lasted for about three hours without any agreement reached.
Recall that ASUU had embarked on a four-week warning strike on February 14. In March, the union extended the industrial action by another two months to allow the government meet all of its demands. In May, the lecturers’ union also announced a 12-week extension.
Since May 9, the union has remained on strike, vowing to persist until its demands are met.
The academics are seeking:
Improved welfare Revitalisation of public universities
UTAS payment platform in place of IPPIS Academic autonomy, among other demands.
One bone of contention for the academics is the non-payment of university revitalisation funds, which amounts to about N1.1 trillion. The federal government, however, said it doesn’t have the money to pay such an amount, citing low oil prices during the Muhammadu Buhari administration.
The agreement was struck in 2009. Another is the issue of the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS). The lecturers have proposed an alternative payroll system, the University Transparency and Accountability Solution (UTAS).