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.Urge Tinubu to fund public varsities, accede to their demands
The University of Ibadan (UI) chapter of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union (NASU), yesterday, called on President Bola Tinubu to rescue public universities from their near comatose situation by funding them appropriately and prioritising university workers’ welfare.
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The SSANU Chairman, UI branch, Abiodun Rasaki Omisore and his NASU counterpart, Michael Ogunlade, made the call while speaking with journalists on the seven-day warning strike embarked upon to press home their demand for the payment of their salaries withheld by the Federal Government.
The unions began a nationwide strike, yesterday, over what they described as unfair treatment and disparity in the payment of withheld salaries by the Federal Government.
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They said the strike was in fulfillment of the earlier threat and ultimatum issued to the Federal Government by the unions over the unpaid withheld salaries of their members.
It would be recalled that President Bola Tinubu had recently directed that university workers that were on prolonged strike in 2022 and their salaries stopped by Muhammadu Buhari’s administration after the invocation of ‘no-work, no-pay ‘ policy, should be paid four months of the withheld salaries.
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Omisore said: ”President Tinubu should help look into this matter. The essence of coming out is not to hurt the university or its members. All over the world, education is central to development. Therefore, what we are telling the government is that it should pay greater attention to the education sector. Welfare, funding, infrastructure, we need universities for national development.
”It appears that some people want to kill public universities. You have not funded the existing ones but you are setting up new ones.”
He noted that the association just decided to change strategy by not blocking the roads or shutting the main entrance of the school but there were no activities being carried out at the offices.
Also speaking, NASU Chairman, Ogunlade, said the warning strike was as a result government’s failure to meet the demand of the association, adding that no work will be done in the university for the next seven days.
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