The National President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, Dr. Nasir Isa Fagge, said that his members are of the consensus view that their ongoing strike action should go ahead in spite of threat to sack them by the Federal Government.
The Supervising Minister of Education, Nyesom Wike, last week, at a news conference in Abuja, ordered the lecturers back to work.
Wike also threatened that any lecturer on the payroll of the Federal Government that fails to resume would lose his job, directing Vice Chancellors to declare such position vacant.
Addressing a news conference in Abuja on Monday, the ASUU president said they would not succumb to such threat, which he described as a “gross violation of the principles of freedom of association.
“We shall bow only to what we as academics are convinced will serve the interest of Nigerians and its people no matter their ethnic, religious or class origin
“This is where we stand. We shall never be cowed. We are not against the reopening of the universities since we were not the one that closed it in the first place
“What ASUU can do is to withdraw our services nationwide and that is what happened.”
According to the ASUU president, they would have called of the strike but for the fears that government officials cannot be trusted.
Fagge cited a particular occasion where the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, authorised a document but later said it was not binding on government because it was signed by a Permanent Secretary.
Fagge said conscious of this, members are of a considered opinion that President Goodluck Jonathan should not just intervene by holding meetings with them, but to go a step further by facilitating the resolutions of the contending issues and direct the Attorney General of the Federation, Mohammed Bello Adoke, to sign whatever agreements that would be reached.
The issues, according to Fagge, are: “The N200 billion agreed upon as 2013 Revitalisation Fund for public universities shall be deposited with the Central Bank of Nigeria and disbursed to the benefiting universities within two weeks.
“The renegotiating of the 2009 agreement in 2014 be included in the final document as agreed at the discussion with your Excellency.
“A non-victimisation clause, which is normally captured in all interactions of this nature, be included in the final document.
“A new memorandum of understanding shall be validly endorsed, signed by a representative of government, preferably the Attorney General of the Federation, and a representative of ASUU, with the president of the NLC as a witness.’’
Fagge therefore, enjoined the Federal Government to fulfill its part of the agreement so as to end the crisis as soon as possible.
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