ACADEMIC Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, will today take a final decision on whether it will proceed on strike over unresolved issues with the Federal Government or not.
Unconfirmed report had it that the union met yesterday at an undisclosed venue to take decision on the looming strike. But when Vanguard sought confirmation of the meeting from the National President of the union, Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi last night, he simply invited our Correspondent to attend a press briefing at Labour House today.
But information had it that Chairmen of state chapters of the union met in Abuja, with the national leadership where they collated and reviewed the results of the referendum they conducted in their separate chapters. The chairmen whom majority of them had approved a nationwide strike, deliberated alongside the National Executive Council, NEC the duration the strike would last.
Recall that the NEC had met at the Nasarawa State University, Keffi on the 22nd and 23rd July, 2017, and deliberated extensively on issues arising from the 2009 ASUU/FGN agreement, the 2013 MoU and other related issues and decided to conduct a referendum at the branch congresses on the next line of action.
According to a letter signed by the union’s National President Prof. Ogunyemi, the issues at stake included payment of fractions/non-payment of salaries; non-payment of earned academic allowances, non-release of operational licence of NUPENCO, retired professors and their salaries, university staff schools, and funds for the revitalisation of public universities.
By Johnbosco Agbakwuru