Nigeria’s largest academic union, ASUU, has announced plans to hold rallies across public universities next week to protest what it described as the federal government’s failure to prioritise its demands, particularly the renegotiation of the 2009 agreement between the government and the union.
In a statement issued on Thursday by its President, Christopher Piwuna, a professor, the union said it would give the government until 28 August to address the demands, after which it would decide on the next line of action, which it hinted could be an industrial action.
The statement was released after the National Executive Council (NEC) meeting held at the Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto on 16 -17 August.
“As always, it is the FGN that has consistently pushed our union to embark on a strike action, and it is clear that ASUU may have no other option than to embark on an action to press the FGN to listen to our demands and do the needful,” the union said.
The union said it has tried several strategies of resolving the dispute with the government, including writing multiple letters, and drawing the government’s attention to the issues, but the government has failed to address them.
“We want to call on our members to come out en masse to participate in the rally across our campuses next week. This rally will be the first shot at the government, and it will signal many other things to come. We reassure members that we will act without let or hindrance in addressing the challenges ahead,” the statement said.
Earlier this month, the union alerted the Nigerian public of a looming nationwide strike that would disrupt activities in campuses across the country should the government fail to meet its obligations as contained in the 2009 agreement it had with the union, as well as the renegotiation of the same.
Govt stalling renegotiation efforts –ASUU
ASUU accused the federal government of dragging its feet on the implementation of the draft renegotiated 2009 agreement submitted by the Yayale Ahmed-led committee in February.
The union said the report was left untouched for months until the government called ASUU for a meeting on 11 August.
It also accused the government of attempting to subvert the principle of the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) in addressing issues in the draft agreement.
While it said it would await the outcome of a scheduled federal government meeting on 28 August before deciding the next line of action, the union noted “time is running out”.
The administration of President Bola Tinubu has been credited for not experiencing any nationwide ASUU strike since it came into office more than two years ago.
Before Mr Tinubu, ASUU strikes were an almost annual exercise due to successive governments’ failure to implement the agreement, usually leading to elongated industrial actions that characterised Nigerian public universities and have altered academic calendars in the institutions.
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However, ASUU has lamented that Mr Tiubu’s government is also toeing its predecessor’s ugly path by stalling renegotiation efforts and failure to address other concerns of the union, including the payment of the remaining three and a half months salaries withheld in 2022, following the government’s declaration of a ‘No work, No Pay’ policy during the union’s eight months strike.
Mr Tinubu paid four of the eight months’ salaries in 2024, but the union maintained it needed to be paid in full.
Also, renegotiation efforts for the 2009 agreement have stalled since 2017, with multiple draft agreements between ASUU and the government-appointed committees ignored by the previous administration of the late Muhammadu Buhari.
