Breaking: ASUU Not Bothered,  Insists On Strike Despite Buhari’s Directive To Adamu

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) seem to be enjoying the plight of teeming university student as it has ruled out the possibility of suspending its six-monthly old strikes.

Their resolution to go ahead with the strike, despite the backlash that has greeted the action was arrived at, late Tuesday evening at the University of Abuja campus where its headquarters is located.

ASUU President, Professor Emmanuel Osodeke, accused the Ministry of Labour and Employment, curated by Dr Chris Ngige of “Conofiator” for continuously creating more chaos in the resolution process.

ASUU had on February 14th embarked on a strike to press home its demand, including the government’s investment in the nation’s university infrastructure, and payment of members’ salaries through the Integrated Personnel Payrolls and Information System IPPIS, but the union had recommended that it was more comfortable with its own designed University Transparency and Accountability Solution (UTAS), among several others.

At the end of the 30 days, the federal government failed to arrest the situation which gave ASUU the roll-over strike on March 14. More recently, the union declared another of 12 weeks strike, thereby keeping the students perpetually at home.

This comes despite President Muhammadu Buhari’s directive to the Minister of Education Adamu Adamu to do everything humanly possible to bring the strike to an end.

Osodeke said the Union will never Suspend Strike but ensure it put a permanent end to , therefore, makes bold to say that the Minister of Labour and Employment has taken upon himself the role of unabashed protagonist in our ongoing dispute with the government of Nigeria for some inexplicable reasons.

“Dr Ngige earlier told whoever cared to listen that he was not the employer of university academics and advised the union to march to the Ministry of Education. Nigerians may wish to know why he has suddenly turned around to constitute himimpedingto impedin ent to an amicable resolution of the ongoing crisis.”

The Unioremains remains focused on its goal of making the Nigerian University system internationally competitive and getting its products to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with their peers in any part of the world.

“We appreciate the teeming Nigerians for identifying with our vision in this respect. We specifically acknowledge the support and sacrifices of our students (including our members who are running their postgraduate programmes) as well as their parents; they are our critical partners in this transformation project. We in ASUU shall do our utmost best not to let you down.

“ASUU appreciates your concerns and sympathetic support. We are as bothered as you are because we share a common interest in the Nigeria project. However, ASUU shall continue to be guided by the sacred canons of integrity, objectivity, and responsibility to which both academics and media practitioners subscribe.

“It is our fervent hope and desire that the current groundswell of interests would culminate in a convergence of solutions to this avoidable crisis in the overall interest of Nigeria Together, we shall win. The struggle continues,” he said.

Speaking further, Osodeke said if Ngige means well as a “conciliator, he won’t be putting roadblocks on the path to completing a process that has dragged for more than five years.

“The Ministry of Labour and Employment, as the chief labour ministry of the country, is principally expected to apprehend disputes between employers and to settle settling such disputes.