Association of Nigeria Universities has threatened
to embark on a nationwide strike if their meeting
with the Federal Government fails to address their
demands.
The union is asking for payment of the Earned
Allowance and rejection of the NEEDs Assessment
Report in universities.
SSANU President, Mr. Samson Ugwoke, on Friday
after the union's NEC meeting at the Ladoke
Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomosho, said
the university workers would commence a
nationwide strike if the meeting with the Secretary
to the Government of the Federation, Pius Anyim,
failed to address the issues in contention.
Ugwoke said the strike had been delayed as a result
of the intervention of the House of Representatives.
He, however, lamented that despite the meeting,
the fund required for the payment was not captured
in the 2013 budget.
He said, "All the (university) unions were together
at a meeting on the invitation of House Committee
on Education. The committee invited us and a
motion of urgent importance was moved.
"Our meeting with them was very robust,
interesting and successful. At the end, the House
suggested that the executive should raise a
supplementary budget covering the Earned
Allowance.
"To our surprise, the National University
Commission decided to write that it will take
N157bn. We said it is not true. How they came
about that figure was not clear to us. We were not
carried along.
"We were surprised to read in the newspapers that
some members of ASUU and the NUC went to the
Chairman, Senate Committee on Education,
Senator Uche Chukwumerije, to
present N157bn as money needed for the payment.
"We have waited enough for the supplementary
budget. At the meeting with the Federal
Government, we expect a definite
answer on the payment of Earned Allowance.
Anything short of that, the NEC mandated us to
declare a total strike action."
Source: www.punchng.com/
