There is an indication the ongoing strikes of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP), and others may end soon as the federal government commences payment of lecturers arrears.
Lecturers who spoke with BusinessDay revealed that some of their colleagues in colleges of education, polytechnics, and universities might have received the payment of their minimum wage arrears from the federal government.
Ifeanyi Abada, the ASUU chairman of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka chapter explained to BusinessDay that they have not received payment from the government and that he was informed that some lecturers in polytechnics have been paid their minimum wage arrears.
When asked if that is a sign that the strike will soon come to an end, he said the lecturers are not averse to discussion and lecturing.
“We are not averse to the discussion. If the federal government does the needful, we will go back to the classroom. We are employed to teach,” Abada said.
Similarly, Stanley Boroh, a lecturer in the Federal University, Otuoke in Bayelsa State said they are yet to get any payment from the government in that regard, however, he acknowledged being aware that some lecturers in colleges of education have started receiving minimum wage arrears.
Read also: ASUU strike: Ladoke Akintola University resumes academic activities
In the same vein, Stanley Alaubi, a senior lecturer in the University of Port Harcourt maintained that ASUU will not call off the strike until the union sees positive actions from the government.
“Once we see implementation, we will call off the strike. But without any positive action from the government, the strike will continue,” he said.
However, a report from BizWatch Nigeria states that the leadership of ASUU in the Federal University of Technology (FUT), Minna, and the national president of ASUP confirmed the payment of minimum wage arrears by the federal government.
Gbolahan Bolarin, the chapter chairman of ASUU in FUTMinna, and Anderson Ezeibe, the national president of ASUP both confirmed this development, stating that it was part of the moves by the federal government to end the ongoing strike.
“The government has started responding. They just started paying the salary/minimum wage arrears, the one they have refused to pay.
“However, that is just one of the demands, so we have not reached anywhere. They have not attended to the others, but I can confirm that people have started receiving alerts of the arrears owed,” Ezeibe said.
While Bolarin on his part, said, “Some of my members got alert of their minimum wage arrears; their salaries are still pending.”
