There are strong indications that the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) which embarked on total, indefinite industrial action last Monday, will likely resume work early next week, following ongoing negotiations with the federal government, BusinessDay has gathered.
During a private meeting with a team of the National Higher Education Forum on Thursday in Abuja, the education minister, Adamu Adamu hinted that universities will likely reopen for learning soon, while confirming ongoing talks.
Adamu confirmed that the government has agreed to release the balance of N23billion Earned Allowances to the striking lecturers.
The Minister said that the Ministry of Finance has promised to undertake a forensic audit of the N30billion allowance earlier released to the lecturers, bringing the total to N53billion, speaking at a separate meeting with the Senate Committee on Tertiary Education and Tertiary Education Trust Fund, (TETFund),.
“They (lecturers) asked for N23billion to be paid. But we said the condition for that N23billion to be released was for them to account for the N30billion they had taken, which is a total of N53billion. And they were not able to account for it.
“The Minister of Finance undertook to do the audit from the ministry. And we agreed that the result will be known in six months. During that six months, government undertook to be paying them N1.5billion each month during the time they are waiting for this”, Adamu told the committee.
He said the Ministry of Finance has already approved the release of the funds but not yet cash backed. “Probably, by Monday, they will be able to receive the cheque. And we will do forensic audit on the entire N53billion”, he assured.
But Adamu insisted that a major request by ASUU, that federal universities be exempted from the Treasury Single Account (TSA) will not be granted.
On Monday, ASUU, an umbrella body of all university lecturers in Nigeria, declared a total, indefinite, nationwide strike over Federal Government’s failure to fulfill the 2009/2013 Agreement made with the Union.
ASUU that there would be no teaching, no examination and no attendance of statutory meeting of any kind in any of its branch till government meets up with it demands.
Among the issues in current disputes involved in the Agreement are: funding for the revitalization of public universities, earned academic allowances, registration of Nigerian universities pension Management Company, university staff school, fictionalisation and non-payment of salaries among others.
While expressing optimism that the industrial action would be called off within the next one week, the Minister said apart from declining the request for TSA exemption, there are some other issues which the federal government equally turned down.
“There are other issues which we didn’t agree. And that was their request to be taken out of TSA. I told them that it is not possible because this is a new policy and government is not going to change it for anyone”.
On the registration of Nigerian universities pension Management Company, Adamu said this would be resolved with the Pension Commission in the next one week.
He attributed the non-payment of salaries to the decision of federal universities to illegally recruit staff, without recourse to the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS).
This, he said, has partially affected government’s effort to eliminate thousands of ghost workers through thorough personnel verification exercise and salary payment process.
“For instance, a university can just decide to go and recruit 50 people. And IPPIS is not aware. So, what they are going to get is they are going to get the money they got last month. And it will not be sufficient for them. They normally spread it among the entire staff. Let’s say they pay 70 percent to 80 percent but that is their fault. So, institutions, we said, must now stop doing that. And they accepted”, Adamu noted.
On his part, Chairman of the committee, Barau Jubril, expressed confidence that the minister would resolve the issues with the striking lecturers and soon as possible.
The lawmaker pleaded with the lecturers to call off the strike while negotiation continues. The Union was, however, not represented at the meeting.
Meanwhile, the renegotiation meeting between the federal government and ASUU, on Thursday was deadlock as the later accused Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, of taking sides with the Federal Government, FG.
ASUU President, Biodun Ogunyemi, while briefing journalists after close door meeting with Minister Adamu and Ngige, who led the Federal Government team, said they will report back to the government in a within one week.
According to him, “Sir, you are already taking sides, as a re-conciliator you are not supposed to take side”.
He however admitted that government has made some offers on the issues which they raised, adding, “we have taken copious note of their offers and we have to get back to our members and make all the information available to them for them to consider and adviceus and based on their position, we will come back to government hopefully within the next one week.
Ogunyemi could not give specifics on what the parties discussed, “I am sorry that I can’t go into discussing specifics. The offers are for our members and when we meet with them, we will come back and unveil all the issues as agreed on”.
On whether the strike will be called off before then, he said, “The leadership of the union did not call the strike, our members called the strike and they will decide when to suspend the strike. So, when our members decide otherwise, it will be off”.
Ngige, Minister of Labour, while speaking, denied being biased, “I am not bias, am a re-conciliator. I look at the file and I saw a letter of complaint dated 10th July that I have not seen before”.
Bgut he raised the concerns that the union did not give due notice before embarking on strike as stipulated in the international labour law.
“Before a union go on strike, you are supposed to serve at least 15 days’ notice and it wasn’t done. The Federal Government wasn’t given any notice before you called for a strike. We must abide by the law, if we are a responsible,” Ngige told the unionists.
According to him, “The meeting was not very long and we touched the various issues. Within the last 48 hours, government has been working. The Minister of Education, Minister of Finance, Attorney General of the Federation and we have taken some government position which we have communicated to ASUU for them to take back to their members to see if that can be adequate enough for them to call off the strike.
“The major issue is that we want the strike called off so that our children in school can write their degree and promotion exams. ASUU graciously said they will come back to us on a date within the next one week. It will not be later than one week so that we then take it from there”.
ONYINYE NWACHUWU, OWEDE AGBAJILEKE & LAIDE AKINBOADE-ORIERE, Abuja
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