The Academic Staff Union of Universities, has issued ultimatum to launch a nationwide strike in response to the notable void of governing councils in all federal universities nationwide, along with other unattended matters by the government.
The Union said that the Federal Government dissolved university governing councils in May of last year.
ASUU further urged Nigerians to demand accountability from the government for any action it takes in response to the government’s decision.
Professor Emmanuel Osodeke, President of ASUU, addressed the press in an ongoing conference at the ASUU national headquarters in Abuja.
“As our union has consistently stated, salary awards are no substitutes for a negotiated agreement. Each negotiated agreement between the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) and ASUU is a comprehensive package that captures not just the salary component but also a gamut of requirements for benchmarking a competitive university system designed for addressing the developmental challenges of Nigeria.
“ASUU’s demand for negotiated salary and other conditions of service is anchored on the International Labour Organisation (ILO’s) Convention No. 98 which underscores the principle of collective bargaining.
“The last FGN/ASUU Agreement was in 2009. Consequent upon the union’s advocacy spanning almost one decade, our union went into the renegotiation with the FGN as in 2017,” he said.
On the issue of governing councils, the NEC observed with dismay the continued erosion of autonomy of public universities, contrary to the provisions of the Universities Miscellaneous Act (1993, 2012).
“The illegal dissolution of governing councils by the Tinubu administration and many state governments has paved the way for all manner of illegalities in the Nigerian University System.
“University administrations now place advertisements for the appointment of vice chancellors without authorisation from the appropriate quarters – the governing councils. Outgoing vice chancellors, working in cahoots with the federal and state ministries of education, are illegally running the universities on a daily basis.
“They routinely usurp the powers of the governing councils to recruit and discipline staff as well as manage university finances in manners bereft of transparency and accountability,” the ASUU boss said
