ASUU Declares One Week Nationwide Warning Strike

• Opposes TSA in universities, calls APC change mantra cosmetic
• Says governemnt still the same previous ruling class

Paul Obi in Abuja

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has declared a one week warning strike to press home its demands to the federal government.

ASUU President, Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi, told journalists in Abuja that the strike became necessary given government’s inability to address several demands and agreements it reached with the body.

According to him, government’s failure to adhere to, and implement the 2009 agreement prompted the body to ask its members nationwide to embark on a one-week warning strike from Wednesday, 16th November, 2016 to protest against government’s action.

ASUU also accused the government of turning the establishment of universities into constituency projects to score cheap political points, an approach the union is vehemently opposed to.

Speaking to journalists at the end of its emergency National Executive Council meeting in Abuja, ASUU National President, Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi, stressed that despite several efforts by the union to get the government to respect their agreement, the government has failed to see reason with it.

He said this has created anxiety among the nation’s academic community.

ASUU enumerated areas of disagreement between the union and government to include payment of a fraction to staff entitlements and the denial of staff entitlements in respect of earned academic allowance amounting to about N128 billion.

He also listed lack of funding of universities for revitalization and the refusal to register the Nigerian Universities Pension Management Company by the Pension Commission.

Other grouses of the union include the introduction of the Treasury Single Account which it said is affecting university autonomy, decrease in budgetary allocation to education and the refusal by government to renegotiate the 2009 agreement which was due for renegotiation since 2012.