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Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), University of Ibadan chapter accused the federal government of taking steps aimed at turning intellectuals to slaves, saying the union will resist the apex government’s grand plan to refuse signing of the renegotiated agreements.
Rising from their congress at the University of Ibadan presided over by the chairman Professor Ayo Akinwole, the congress of the University of Ibadan ASUU said it was fully supporting the decision of the leadership of the union to fight for the welfare of her members whose welfare has been neglected for over 13 years.
While briefing newsmen shortly after the congress, Professor Ayo Akinwole who was flanked by the secretary, Dr Chris Omoregie, Dr Dapo Adewole, Dr Sarah Akintola (Treasurer) and Dr Dapo Okareh (Internal Auditor) disclosed that the union has been pushed to the wall and will now fight back.
According to Ayo Akinwole, the federal government has employed all formal and informal tactics to delay the renegotiation of 2009 agreements for four years and the new agreement was supposed to have been effective if the government had signed it in 2021.
He hinted that rather than signing the agreement which took four years to be reached, “the federal government now said the agreement will now be tabled before another tripartite committee to consider it. We know this is a strategy of the Buhari administration to continue to impoverish the intellectual community.”
Akinwole said the union explored all possible avenues to make the government do the needful and allow many stakeholders who approached the union to mediate to prevent another strike.
He however said “they all reported back to us that they were not able to convince the government and that the government was adamant.”
According to him, the federal government still owes universities about N880 billion on revitalisation of universities and has also refused to mainstream earned academic allowances in the 2022 budget as promised.
The ASUU boss also lamented that while Nigerian politicians are among the highest paid in the world, Nigerian lecturers are among the poorly paid in the world with professors earning less than $1,000 in a month.
Also, ASUU chapter of the University of Maiduguri chapter has declared Wednesday a lecture- free day in compliance with the national body directive.
This was contained in a statement issued and jointly signed by the chairperson of UNIMAID ASUU, Dr. Abubakar Mshelia and the secretary, Dr. Hassan Dogo, in Maiduguri.
The statement reads:” As you may be aware, the Academic Staff Union ( ASUU ) Yola Zone , met on Sunday 6th February, 2022 , in Gombe, Gombe State, to review the strike mobilisation in its various branches.
“The Zone upholds the directive of the national body of the union to declare a lecture- free day just as must have been observed in other zones of ASUU.
“The directive required all branches to declare a lecture- free day on the day they hold their respective congress meetings before the National Executive Committee ( NEC ) meeting scheduled to be held on Saturday 12th February, 2022 in Lagos ( UNILAG NEC ) .”
The statement added that the lecture – free day is aimed at sensitising the general public especially, its students on the longstanding impasse between the federal government of Nigeria and ASUU.
“Accordingly, the Academic Staff Union of Universities ( ASUU ) , University of Maiduguri branch hereby declares Wednesday 9th February, 2022 as a lecture – free day in compliance with the directive of the national body of the union. The day would be set aside for the mobilisation of our members and sensitisation of the public.
“In view of the above , all distinguished members of the Union at the University of Maiduguri are enjoined to attend the important congress meeting scheduled for Wednesday, 9th February, 2022 by 10: am at the UNIMAID ASUU secretariat unfailingly and be part of the discussions and decision making process.
“We appeal to our dear students and the general public for understanding and support in order to rescue public universities from imminent total collapse,” UNIMAID ASUU said.