ASUU members will hold congresses to decide their next steps following Tuesday’s nationwide protests, as the Federal Government meets today to address long-standing disputes over the 2009 FGN-ASUU agreement. The Tinubu administration had earlier released N50bn for earned academic allowances, but lecturers continue to demand better pay, improved conditions of service, funding for universities, autonomy, and a review of NUC and JAMB laws.
Today’s meeting, expected to involve the Ministers of Education and Labour, as well as the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission, will focus on reconciling the Yayale Ahmed committee draft with the original 2009 agreement and subsequent reports, including that of Nimi Briggs. It will also consider how to phase fiscal commitments into the national budget and produce a legally binding document.
ASUU president, Prof. Chris Piwuna, said the union was not invited to the meeting but would consult members on the next course of action. “Our members are tired of words and no action,” he said. Lecturers have long decried stagnant salaries and poor conditions, with graduate assistants earning as little as N125,000 monthly and professors between N525,000 and N633,000 before deductions. Many academics say take-home pay barely covers living costs, with some forced to sleep in offices.
Former UNILAG vice chancellor, Prof. Oluwatoyin Ogundipe, lamented the erosion of morale among lecturers, noting that his pay as a professor was lower than his previous vice chancellor salary. Other academics, including Prof. Tunde Adeoye and Prof. Andrew Haruna, warned that poor pay, inadequate infrastructure, and lack of respect for academia were driving brain drain and crippling universities’ ability to attract and retain talent.
ASUU has rejected loan-style government offers in place of direct entitlements and insists on full adoption of the renegotiated agreement, warning that further neglect could trigger another shutdown of public universities.
Source: https://punchng.com/
