Unmet Demands: Govt Buying Time With Fresh Negotiation Committee – Varsity Unions

Joint Action Committee (JAC) of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU) person staged a protestation successful Abuja to request the contiguous implementation of respective long-standing agreements reached with the national government.

The protest, which took spot astatine Yakubu Gowon University (formerly University of Abuja), was besides held connected assemblage campuses nationwide.

The Abuja protestation was led by SSANU chairman, Comrade Nurudeen Yusuf, and Comrade Sadiya Ibrahim Hassan, the NASU section chairperson.

They noted that respective committees had been acceptable up since 2012 without producing tangible outcomes.

The national leaders described the process arsenic an unending ellipse of meetings without progress.

The unions accused the national authorities of neglect, insincerity and a persistent breach of corporate agreements with the unions since 2022.

Addressing journalists successful Abuja, Yusuf said the protestation was prompted by respective unheeded appeals, warnings and ultimatums to the government.

The unions listed six unresolved issues fuelling the ongoing protest, including the renegotiation of the 2009 FGN/NASU/SSANU agreements, non-payment of the approved 25 per cent and 35 per cent wage increments, and unjust disbursement of the N50 cardinal earned allowances.

Other grievances see the non-payment of 2 months’ salaries withheld from 2022, the non-remittance of third-party deductions, and the wide neglect of non-teaching unit payment successful the assemblage system.

The unions said their vexation stemmed from the long-overdue renegotiation of the 2009 SSANU/NASU agreements, which should beryllium reviewed each 3 years.

“This gathering aims to shed airy connected the interaction of the escalating situation successful the assemblage assemblage connected our members. Regrettably, the government’s unfulfilled promises person necessitated this nationalist connection to caution each stakeholders successful our universities and inter-university centres, arsenic the presumption quo is unsustainable for our acquisition strategy owed to the government’s insincerity astir the plight of members of NASU and SSANU”, Yusuf said.

NASU chairperson, Comrade Sadiya Hassan, said the government’s attack of repeatedly mounting up caller committees alternatively of fulfilling existing obligations had deepened mistrust betwixt some sides.

“The past gathering we had with the authorities was connected October 6, pursuing an earlier 1 connected September 22. Instead of addressing the issues, different committee called the Expanded Yayale Ahmed Committee was acceptable up.

“These issues bash not necessitate caller committees. The authorities already has each the facts and figures. The archetypal measurement should beryllium to merchandise the withheld salaries and arrears arsenic a amusement of bully faith,” she explained.

NASU nationalist president, Dr Makolo Hasan, who joined the protestation successful solidarity, said the determination to marginalise their members was a wide breach of the 2022 corporate bargaining agreement.

Both national leaders warned that they were moving retired of patience and urged the authorities to enactment earlier the nation’s assemblage strategy faces different large shutdown.