The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has officially announced the suspension of its ongoing two-week warning strike.
The National President of ASUU, Prof. Chris Piwuna, disclosed this during a press briefing held on Wednesday in Abuja.
According to Piwuna, the decision followed an extended meeting of the National Executive Council (NEC), which began on Tuesday and concluded around 4:00 am on Wednesday.
He explained that the union decided to suspend the strike after a series of discussions with representatives of the Federal Government showed signs of progress, even though all demands were not fully met.
“We’ve had useful engagements with representatives of the government to consider the response to the draft renegotiation of the 2009 agreements. However, we are definitely not where we were prior to the commencement of the strike,”
Piwuna stated.
He further added that ASUU’s NEC acknowledged the government’s return to the negotiation table but maintained that a lot more still needs to be done.
“While noting that a lot more work is still required, NEC came to the conclusion that the ongoing strike should be reviewed. The decision to review the strike action was a result of efforts by our students, parents, and the Nigeria Labour Congress. Consequently, NEC resolved to suspend the warning strike to reciprocate the efforts of well-meaning Nigerians,”
he added.
Recall that ASUU had declared a total and comprehensive two-week warning strike starting from Monday, October 13, to press home several demands.
The union’s demands include:
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Conclusion of the renegotiated 2009 FGN-ASUU agreement,
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Release of withheld three and a half months’ salaries,
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Sustainable funding and revitalisation of public universities,
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Cessation of the victimisation of lecturers in LASU, Prince Abubakar Audu University, and FUTO,
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Payment of outstanding salary arrears (25-35%), promotion arrears spanning over four years,
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And release of withheld third-party deductions, including cooperative contributions and union check-off dues.
ASUU stated that it will continue to engage with the Federal Government to ensure that all outstanding issues are addressed in the interest of Nigeria’s public university system.
