The Academic Staff Union of Universities has directed it various branches to hold their congress and decide the fate of the eight-month-old strike based on the new offer by the Federal Government, Daily Sun is reporting.
According to the report, the highly influential newspaper said it learnt that ASUU over the weekend asked each branch to hold its congress between November 23 and 25, with the outcome to be taken to the next meeting on Friday with officials of the Federal Government.
The Federal Government had on November 20, 2020 offered ASUU N65 billion for the Earned Academic Allowance and revitalisation fund for public universities.
The government also agreed to pay additional N15 billion as revitalisation fund.
The amount is in addition to the N20 billion that was initially proposed.
Daily Sun said it further gathered that if the new offer by government is accepted by the branches, it will shape the outcome of the ongoing eight months industrial action.
The Zonal Coordinators of ASUU for Ibadan and Lagos Zones, Prof. Olusiji Sowande and Prof. Ade Adejumo, as well as the Chairman of the University of Lagos branch, Dr. Dele Ashiru, confirmed the directive by the leadership of the union to the branches to hold their congresses and take a decision on the new government offer.
According to the report, for the Akure Zone of ASUU, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife will hold its congress on Monday; Federal University of Technology Akure on Tuesday; and Federal University Oye-Ekiti and Ekiti State University, Ado-Ekiti will meet on Wednesday to make inputs into the government’s offer.
ASUU embarked on strike on March 23, 2020 to demand for the implementation of their demands.
Among these were the use of Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System to pay university lecturers’ salaries and allowances, as against the ASUU-developed University Transparency and Accountability Solution; renegotiation of the 2009 FG/ASUU agreement; revitalisation fund for public universities; and setting up of Visitation Panels.
