ASUU threatens indefinite strike after failed agreement with FG

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has threatened to embark on an indefinite strike over the failure of the Federal Government to honour the 2009 agreement reached with it.

Prof. Timothy Namo, the Bauchi Zonal Coordinator of the union said this during a news conference on Friday in Jos.

Namo said that the union after its National Executive Council (NEC) held between Aug. 17 and Aug. 18, issued a 21-day ultimatum.

”As we speak, government has not honour any of the agreements or address our concerns.

”At the expiration of the 21-day ultimatum, we again issued another 14-day ultimatum that commenced from Sept. 23.

”So, we want Nigerians to blame the federal government if ASUU decides to down tools and shut down public universities,” he said.

Namo highlighted the lingering issues, nonconclusion of the re-negotiation of the 2009 agreement, non-release of the three-and-half month salaries of academic staff, unpaid salaries of all academic staff on the adjunct appointment, and outstanding third-party deductions

Other lingering issues, he said, were, poor funding for the revitalization of public universities, none payment of Earned Academic Allowances (EAA) as captured in the 2023 budget, proliferation of universities, and nonimplementation of the reports of visitation panels to universities, among others.