Government should be sincere, engaging to end strikes in varsities, says ASUU

Daily, there appears to be no end in sight to the adversarial relationship between the Federal Government and university teachers in the country, under the aegis of Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU). The teachers, for the umpteenth time, have downed tools as part of a one-week warning strike to press for their demands.

Most times, at the root of the regular face off between the government and the teachers, are chronic under-funding of the sector, staff welfare, improved learning conditions, and failure of government to implement mutually consented agreements. The ongoing strike action, which got underway yesterday, is no different.

Ahead of the commencement of the industrial action, the leadership of the union, after its emergency executive meeting, expressed dissatisfaction with the poor funding of the sector, through low budgetary allocation, which plummeted to eight per cent in 2016 from 11 per cent in 2015.

President of the union, Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi, while speaking at a press conference, marshaled the failure of government to implement the 2009 agreement, and the 2013 Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), as some of the reasons for embarking on the warning strike.

He regretted that vain promises by the government have only contributed to worsening an already bad scenario, adding that his members were really disappointed with government’s disposition, even after it set up its negotiation team for the review of agreement, as consistently requested by ASUU since 2012.

In declaring the strike, he had stressed that; “There shall be no teaching, no examination and no attendance of statutory meetings of any kind in any of our branches while the strike lasts.”

Insisting that machinery would be put in place to ensure total compliance during the strike, Ogunyemi informed that the warning strike was to draw attention of concerned stakeholders and the general public to the challenges that the unions, universities and other stakeholders in the sector were facing.

“We are doing this because we want Nigerians to come into the matter and ensure that these issues are given adequate attention they deserve… Our lecturers are given 40 per cent of their salaries, which is just not encouraging, as this will lead to poor commitment in carrying out their jobs. I am sure nobody will like a 40 per cent university education, or 40 per cent teaching of various courses including research development and output. That is why we have to take the matter before the National Assembly, which we believe, will come into the matter just like the Nigerian parents.”

Asked if there were no alternatives to the incessant strike actions that set the university system back horribly, Ogunyemi, only hours into the commencement of the warning strike responded in the affirmative.

“There is an alternative to strike actions in the university system, but that can only be possible if the government is sincere and engaging. This is because even when a government engages, but fails to meet what it pledged, owing to circumstances, it can always call the parties involved and work out an arrangement, and people will have faith, and justifiable reason to still look into the days ahead with a lot of hope and enthusiasm,” Ogunyemi told The Guardian, yesterday.

The ASUU boss lamented that, “The issue of resorting to strike action we have been trying to manage for sometime now. We have released a long rope for government to pull, but they failed to. We are thinking of who will give us an alternative because the way we see it, the government is never ready to pull. We don’t ever embark on strike action without holding series of meetings, writing letters conscientising stakeholders, and without telling Nigerians and generally taking every necessary step geared towards averting the strike action.

“We have always done this, but at every point in time, the government of the day is always failing to reciprocate the gesture, by taking steps to prevent a situation where there would be a breakdown in discussions or labour relations. So, we are always left to resort to the strike action since the government is not always honouring our overtures. That is where we are right now,” he stated.

Ogunyemi stressed that: “Insincerity on the part of government is what always get us into this. For instance, the last time we met with the minister to present our demands, there were directives that he gave to some officials of his ministry. Some were told ‘work out these figures and bring the calculated figures to me, follow up on these and bring back information on them’ etc. But we have always told government, ‘if you want to deliver on your promises, attach timelines because that is only when you can track performance, but government seems not to understand that you really cannot account for activities that are not time-bound.

“We don’t always believe in the bureaucratic language of ‘we are looking into it,’ which government is always comfortable with. Our members are really tired of such language. How can you be telling people who retired three years ago, but are yet to begin to draw their pension that you are looking at the process? If you promise to register a pension fund administrator for us, and we have fulfilled all the required conditions and you keep on telling us that you are looking into the matter, what are you looking for? He questioned.

Asked the possibility of having in place, a university system that is devoid of industrial actions, he said there was.“Human needs are insatiable. But it is possible to have a university system that is without strike actions. Simply do what other governments are doing. Be sincere, be engaging and adopt an established framework that would address demands as they crop up. Consultations should be regular, and discussions during these consultations as frank as possible. All these we tried to establish when we had our implementation monitoring committee, which was concerned with the monitoring of aspects of the agreement as they are being implemented, but nothing came out of it.”

Chairperson, Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), University of Lagos (UNILAG) Chapter, Comrade Adelaja Odukoya, is in sync with his national leader as he maintained that strike actions couldn’t be averted when those in authority pay scant heed to issues bothering the led.

“When those who are supposed to listen refuse to do so, strike becomes the last option, and the fact that we are just going on a one-week warning strike is actually a demonstration of the fact that we don’t even enjoy it. But we have a government that is deaf, and irresponsible to the yearnings of the university system.

“You are aware that we went on strike in 2013 and there were understandings and agreements reached. Up till now, the Federal Government promised it will release N200bn to the university system every year, we are in arrears of four years already and that is N800bn. The Federal Government since 2013 has refused to pay our earned academic allowances, and our 2009 agreement was due for renegotiation in 2012, as I’m talking to you, four years after nothing has been done.

“Despite government’s negligence, we have been working since then. This is also a demonstration of our patience. Strike is not an option for ASUU, but due to government’s total disregard to our feelings, we decided to go for one-week warning strike,” he said.

Odukoya continued, “As a responsible union, we created awareness in the past from the national to the zonal quarters, calling on government to look into our demands, what has been the reaction of government since then? Failed promises.

“If after the one week warning strike nothing happens, we will go back to the classrooms, hoping that other stakeholders that have folded their hands hitherto, will now get involved and make the government to see the reason to do the needful, but we will pursue that process for some time. And if we don’t get anything done, then we will reconsider our options.”