ASUU Strike: President Buhari Meets With Pro-Chancellors (Photos)
President Muhammadu Buhari met with the Chairman and a few pro-chancellors of federal universities on Friday at State House in Abuja. He pledged to continue consultations with relevant parties in an effort to put an end to the long-running strike by university lecturers, which is being led by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
The President said, “I will make more consultations and I’ll get back to you,” without necessarily contradicting existing policy.
Professor Nimi Briggs escorted the Pro-Chancellors to the meeting and said that they were there to see the President in three different capacities: “as President and Commander-in-Chief, as father of the nation, and as Visitor to the Federal universities.”
He added that despite the pall cast by more than seven months of industrial action, “the future of university system in the country is good,” citing as example the recent listing of the University of Ibadan among the first 1,000 universities in the world, a development occurring for the first time.
Prof Briggs commended Federal Government for concessions already made to the striking lecturers, including the offer to raise salaries by 23.5% across board, and 35% for Professors. He, however, asked for “further inching up of the salary, in view of the economic situation of the country.”…………..Continue Reading
Pro-Chancellors also asked for a reconsideration of the No-Work, No-Pay stance of gue overnment, promising that lecturers would make up for time lost as soon as an amicable situation was reached, and schools reopened.
Minister of State for Education, Goodluck Nana Opiah, said all the concessions made by Federal Government were to ensure that the industrial action comes to an end, but ASUU has remained adamant.
Femi Adesina
Special Adviser to the President
(Media and Publicity)
September 16, 2022
