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Allowances: ASUU issues three-week ultimatum over failed promises

A fresh crisis is looming in the education sector. The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has issued a three-week ultimatum to the Federal Government to meet its demands contained in the Memorandum of Action (MoA) signed by both parties 11 months and two weeks ago.

 

This came as the Union revealed that an independent committee has been set up to probe  what it described as questionable appointment of the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Ibrahim Pantami, as Professor of Cyber Security at the Federal University of Technology Owerri.

 

Addressing newsmen on Monday in Abuja at the end of its National Executive Council (NEC) meeting held over the weekend, the Union warned that should government fail to meet its demands within the time frame of the ultimatum, the chances of plunging the university system into another crisis of industry disharmony was very high.

President of ASUU, Comrade Emmanuel Osodeke, who noted that the body language of government at the last meeting convened at the instance of the Minister of Labour and Employment, Sen. Chris Ngige on October 14 signalled hope all issues had been addressed, lamented that the various reports promises made by government were still yet to be implemented and fulfilled respectively.

 

He said: “We are very dissatisfied with the government’s attitude to our issues. We have given the government three weeks to meet our demands during the NEC meeting we had Saturday and Sunday.

 

“We call on patriotic Nigerians and livers of Nigeria to prevail on the Federal Government and State governments to act fast to prevent another round of industrial crisis in Nigeria’s public universities.

“It is painful that our Union may soon have no other way of securing the implementation of FGN-ASUU collectively bargained agreements and redressing the criminal neglect of welfare issues of our members by state governors. Governments of Nigeria should be held responsible should ASUU be forced to activate the strike it patriotically suspended on 23rd December 2021.”

Frowning at Dr. Pantami’s appointment as a Professor at FUTO, the union, while listing several criteria for attainment of the position of a professor in any Nigerian university, rejected the Minister’s Professorship in its entirety on the grounds of being unqualified for the position.

 

According to ASUU, Pantami’s professorship could only be accepted: if he met the 12-year post qualification requirement as contained in the advertisement of the position, if he has at least 70 percent of academic publications or web presence, if he has met the conditions of teaching, supervision and mentoring younger academics and the general assessment of students previously taught by him.

 

On the controversy being generated by non-academic staff Unions on Earned Academic Allowances (EAA), the ASUU President, who clarified that no dime has been paid by government, explained that the EAA was an agreement reached with government to pay lecturers for the extra students they have to teach, due to the inability of the Nigerian University System to adhere to the accepted ratio of one lecturer to certain number if students not above one to 15.

 

Expressing worry over the incessant attacks on educational institutions especially universities, ASUU urged government to address the simmering insecurity situation in university campuses by releasing adequate funds to address the documented rot and decay and ensure perimeter fencing of institutions becomes a priority

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