Strike: Union Dissatisfied With FG’s Response To Demands – Osodeke

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has expressed dissatisfaction with the Federal Government over response its demands, and declared a “comprehensive, total and indefinite” strike.

ASUU President, Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke made this known in a statement issued at the end of the Union National Executive Council (NEC) emergency meeting early hours on Tuesday in Abuja.

The statement is entitled “ASUU strikes are to save public universities”.

It would be recalled that the lecturers have been on strike since Feb. 14, over alleged failure of government to keep to agreements entered with the unions.

The demands of the striking lecturers include issues bordering on funding of universities, salaries and earned allowances of lecturers, among others.

Osodeke said that the meeting was called to review developments since its last resolution that rolled over the nationwide strike action for another four weeks starting from Aug 1. “In view of the foregoing, and following extensive deliberations on government’s response to the resolution of Feb. 14, 2022 , so far, NEC concluded that the demands of the union had not been satisfactorily addressed.

“Consequently, NEC resolved to transmute the roll-over strike to a comprehensive, total and indefinite strike action beginning from 12.01am. on Monday, Aug.  29, 2022,’’ he said.

According to him, NEC observed with regret that the union has experienced a lot of deceit of the highest level in the last five and half years as the Federal Government engaged ASUU in fruitless and unending negotiation without a display of utmost fidelity.

Osodeke said that ASUU and other well-meaning Nigerians had expressed serious disappointment and consternation on the attitude of the government conveyed by the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu.

He said that for the avoidance of doubt, however, none of the issues that forced the union to resume the suspended strike as listed in the December 2020 FGN-ASUU Memorandum of Action (MoA) had been satisfactorily addressed by the government to date.