The Federal Ministry of Education has responded to speculation that the government plans to prescribe the striking Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU.
The ministry denied knowledge of any such plans to proscribe ASUU.
However, the ministry described as unreasonable, ASUU’s failure to call off its strike despite the intervention of the Minister of Education.
This was stated by the ministry’s spokesperson, Ben Goong, in an interview with Punch.
Speculations were rife in the media that the government was making plans to proscribe the academic union and drag it to the National Industrial Court over the lingering strike.
Goong said, “We are not aware of such plans. The minister gave all the updates during his press briefing with State House correspondents. If there were plans to take further steps, he would have noted it.
See Also: ASUU NEC To Make Decision On Strike Sunday
“As regards the next steps, the government has already inaugurated a committee to harmonise the IPPIS, UTAS and UP3; this will ensure that the government will pay with only one payment platform that will harmonise all the technical peculiarities.
“The government has also rolled out its achievements. A total of N2.5 trillion has been expended in the tertiary education sector in the past 10 years, that is even much more than the amount in the 2009 agreement. The issues about salary adjustment have also been attended to.
“If you bring some demands and almost 80% has been attended to, there is no need to drag the strike anymore. It is unreasonable for the strike to be lingering, seeing as the government has worked towards fulfilling most of the demands.
Source: Punch