ASUU Agrees To Suspend Strike After Secret Meeting, Gives Jonathan Three Conditions

ASUU Agrees To Suspend Strike After Secret
Meeting, Gives Jonathan Three Conditions
University lecturers in Nigeria have agreed to end
the five-month old strike by the Academic Staff
Union of Universities, ASUU, if the federal
government agrees to three conditions, according
to the Nigerian Eye.
The three conditions are expected to be made
known to President Goodluck Jonathan today,
after which the strike will be called off and if an
agreement is reached.
Although, ASUU has forbidden its local chapters
and zonal chairmen from talking to the press until
the end of the session. A source, who was part of
the ASUU session, which was held at Mambayya
House in Kano, however revealed the conditions
as:
1. Commitment from the President that any review
or reconsideration or renegotiation of the 2009
Agreement will not substantially affect the pact
which is the cause of the ongoing strike;
2. Immediate payment of all outstanding salary
arrears and allowances of varsity teachers
without victimization; and
3. A written commitment from the President that
the Federal Government will commit N225 billion
annually to the funding of universities for the next
four years.
According to the source, “Our leaders are meeting
with the President on Monday to table these
conditions. Once the President accepts these
three terms, the strike will be called off.
“In principle, members voted about 60-40 per cent
to call off the strike, but they added a caveat –
that ASUU leaders should extract a commitment
(signed and sealed) from the President.”
“It became imperative for ASUU to makes these
demands, as it became obvious that the FG
wanted the 2009 Agreement to be renegotiated.
“If ASUU had accepted to renegotiate the entire
Agreement, it means there will be no basis for the
ongoing strike. The worst that can happen is either
having the abridged version of the 2009
Agreement or a phased implementation of the
document,” the source added.
He also added that the conditions are not just
three, but the fourth is “personal” to ASUU.