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ABUJA – Barring any last minutes change, academic activities may resume in public universities next week, as Federal Government has approved over N35.4 billion for the striking Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).

Just in: asuu and fg reached an agreement

In a resolution reached Monday night between the Federal Government and the leadership of ASUU at the Conference Hall, Ministry of Labour and Employment, Abuja, the government announced that Federal Ministry of Finance and Accountant General of the Federation have confirmed payment of N15.389.940,335.71 billion to accommodate payment of shortfall in all institutions that are Presidential Initiative of Continuous Audit, PICA varied.

The Minister of Labour and Employment who disclosed this at the end of the meeting said the money was remitted on the 31st December, 2018.

Ngige also said that President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the payment of N20 billion for payment of outstanding arrears of the 2009 and 2012 Earned Academic Allowances to the already verified university system.

“The money is being worked on and will be released to ASUU when the process is completed,” he said.
He reiterated government’s resolve to grant permanent licence to ASUU to operate the National University Pension Fund Administrator Company (NUPENCO) that will manage the contributory pension of public universities.

FG and Asuu finally reached an agreement

To this end, the Minister explained that Federal Ministry of Education has been directed to liaise with National Pension Commission for the release of the permanent licence.
Ngige also assured on the resolve of the Buhari administration to offer undisclosed amount from the N220 billion annual revitalisation fund for universities which was agreed during President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration but was reneged.
He said government was going to look for funds and that a token which he did not disclose has been offered to the union to demonstrate governmentas good faith.

According to him, ASUU is expected to return back to Government between Wednesday, 9th or Thursday, 10th January, 2019 to sign relevant agreements reached by the parties.

While speaking Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi, ASUU President who confirmed the agreement however noted that some of the proposals from government requires further consultation with ASUU members.
“We have had an extensive session looking at all issues.

There are issues that require further consultation at the level of our union before we can take a stand,” he said.

The Ladoke Akintola University of Technology , Ogbomoso, Oyo State , has commenced full academic activities for the 2018/2019 session.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that lecturers across the various faculties resumed lectures on Monday with students excited that the prolonged strike called by the Academic Staff Union of Universities was broken .

NAN reports that social and academic activities returned to the campuses of the institution both in Ogbomoso and Osogbo , while students were still returning as at the time of filing the report .

Abiodun Oluwaseun, the Students’ Union President , who monitored the resumption alongside other executive members , expressed satisfaction with the directive to resume .

“ We are all happy and impressed that lectures are actually taking place in all the places we visited .

“ As a union , we cannot ask for more, we only want to appeal to our lecturers who are still not cooperating to join hands with their colleagues to salvage LAUTECH .

“ The number of students who have resumed is also very encouraging and we thank stakeholders for this New Year gift that is most appreciated , ” Oluwaseun said .
Chairman , Parents and Teachers’ Committee, Rev . ( Dr) Israel Olaniyan, said parents are particularly happy at the resumption of lectures. Every reasonable parent should be happy of course.

“ We plead with the governors of Oyo and Osun states to help ensure that workers are paid as and when due , so that we can hope for an uninterrupted academic sessions, ” Olaniyan said .

He expressed the readiness of his committee to continue to meet with other stakeholders towards finding a lasting solution to the various problems threatening the survival of the university .

Chairman , LAUTECH Alumni Association , Ogbomoso branch, Dr. Azeem Ige, encouraged everyone to cooperate in the efforts to take the institution to greater heights .

He appealed to the leadership of ASUU, especially in LAUTECH , to seek peaceful resolution to the crisis .
Thus: “ We are ASUU members and fully aware of what the association is fighting for ; but we also have to consider the plight of our students .

“ Our appeal is for our leaders in the association to consider other means while lecture continues, ” Ige comments .

The Nigerian government has reached an agreement with striking university lecturers, raising the possibility of ending the teachers’ prolonged industrial action.

The national president of the Academic Staff Union of Universities(ASUU), Biodun Ogunyemi, said the National Executive Committee of the union will review its decisions based on the new commitment by the federal government.

He said the strike could only be called off after the NEC meeting. He did not say when the meeting will hold.

“We have had an extensive session, looking at all the issues,” he said.
According to him, there are issues that will require further consultations before the union can suspend its strike.

”In view of this, government has promised to reach us as soon as possible with a written proposal on those areas we need further consultations. And when we receive that, we shall treat accordingly and get back to the appropriate quarters,” he said.

The lecturers have been on strike since November 4, 2018, to demand improved funding of universities and implementation of previous agreements with the government.
After the Monday meeting, the labour minister, Chris Ngige, said an agreement had been reached.

According to him, the accountant general and the ministry of finance have confirmed with evidence that N15.4 billion had been released to public universities.

On earned allowances, Mr Ngige said President Buhari has approved N20 billion to be used to offset the outstanding arrears of the 2009 to 2012 verified earnings in the universities.

He said the earned allowances will be released to ASUU as soon as the process is completed.

“ASUU has fulfilled their side in time for the pension administrator to take care of pension of their staff. They earlier gave ASUU a temporary licence and ASUU has done the needful to get their licence. So, it is resolved,” he said.

Speaking on the issue of state universities, Mr Ngige said an eight-member committee has been put in place to meet with governors.

He said the Goodluck Jonathan administration entered an agreement of N220 billion annual university funding with ASUU for the next 6 years, starting from 2009.
He said the federal government will look for resources to meet the commitment and ASUU has been offered some token to show good faith.

Mr Ngige said the union should take the resolution of the meeting back to its members and get back to the government on Thursday.

”These are the major issues we discussed and ASUU is supposed to take back the resolution of these meetings to their members. We expect that they will get back to us by Thursday,” he said.

The federal government on Monday resumed talks with the leaders of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) with both sides expressing hope of an agreement that would bring an end to the ongoing strike in public universities.

ASUU LATEST NEWS: LAUTECH Commences Full Academic Activities Despite Ongoing ASUU Strike

Lecturers at the universities went on strike on November 4 last year, demanding improved funding of universities and implementation of previous agreements with the government.

The national president of ASUU, Biodun Ogunyemi, led the union’s delegation to Monday’s meeting.
ABSUCAFE had reported ASUU saying it would not honour further calls by the federal government for a meeting with its members on the strike.

But Mr Ogunyemi told ABSUCAFE on Sunday afternoon that the union was available for discussion with the government.

”They said they have taken some steps and they want to present them tomorrow. So, we want to see what they have done. And if they are convincing enough, we will inform our members,” he said.
The ASUU delegation arrived at the ministry at exactly 4:30 p.m on Monday.

Also in attendance were the Permanent Secretary of Federal Ministry of Education, Sunny Echono; the national president of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Ayuba Wabba; and officials from the National Universities Commission, Head of Service and Salaries, Wages and Income commission.

LAUTECH HAS COMMENCED ACADEMIC ACTIVITIES DESPITE THE STRIKE

The meeting is holding at the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment, Abuja.
Six other meetings had been held between both parties since the strike began.

When the government delegation arrived, the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, was absent. However, the permanent secretary of the ministry, Mr Echono, was present.

The government delegation was led by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige.

In his opening remarks, Mr Ngige expressed optimism that the meeting will be short and fruitful, adding that feelers from the Federal Government gave reason to hope that an agreement will be reached tonight.

”The deliberation will be short as the government has done a lot of work since the meeting was adjourned, ” he said.

While responding to the appeal by the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) that the media should cover the technical session, Mr Ngige said he would make sure the students return to school as soon as possible.
”I feel your pain but none of my children is schooling abroad, ” Mr Ngige said .

Similarly, the ASUU president said it appeared there was good news for the union from what the minister said.

In his speech, NANS’ president, Danielson Akpan, said it is essential for the media to cover the technical session for proper reportage of the deliberation.
Details later…

Yobe State University Damaturu on Monday opened for academic activities despite the ongoing nationwide strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
Dr. Kalli Alkali Yusuf Gazali, Registrar of the university, had released a duly signed internal circular with reference number R/YUS/GC/014/vol. 1/15, dated 24th December, 2018 addressed to Provost, Deans, Directors and Head of Departments indicating resumption of academic activities on the 7th of January, 2019.

‘commencement of lectures after Christmas and New year break for the 2018/2019 academic session’.
It reads: “This is the provost, Deans, Directors and Head of Departments that, lectures after Christmas and New Year break will commence on Monday 7th January, 2019 for the 2018/2019 academic session.
“This is for the compliance of all Faculties, Directorates and Departments”.

Our correspondent gathered that lectures, on Monday, commenced in some departments of the university with few students in attendance.
However, when contacted via short massage service (sms) on the position of the union as regards to the resumption considering that its strike was yet to be called off, the ASUU branch chairman of the university, Mohammed Adamu Gulani replied as saying, “our position is still same as ASUU National”.

He was optimistic that members of the union will not breach the union’s trust, while insisting that there is absolute unity of purpose among them.

Recall that ASUU commenced an indefinite nationwide strike on November 5, 2018 over certain demands based on agreement reached with government in 2009.
Since then, the government and the union leaders have been holding series of meetings meant to find lasting solution to the lingering industrial action.

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has warned the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile Ife, against conducting examinations when 70 per cent of courses have not been taught students.

The university, which called back its students to school on Monday, has scheduled the examinations to start on January 14.
But members of ASUU at the university, called by their national body, said the examinations would be “null and void” if conducted and warned students against participating in the examinations.

Lecturers of the university are divided over the strike as those in the parallel Congress of Universities Academics (CONUA) refused to join in the nationwide strike of ASUU which began on November 4.
The management of OAU said the examination will begin on January 14 despite that some students have not been receiving lectures for the past three months.
However, ASUU, in an open letter to the students signed by its chairman, Adeola Egbedokun, warned that any examination conducted by the school will be null and void.

The lecturers said a minimum of 12 weeks teaching, one compulsory lecture-free week and two weeks of examination as provided by the university regulations had not been adhered to.
ASUU accused the OAU management of pressuring its members to set examination questions for courses and topics not taught.
The letter read in part: “All these infractions are attempts by the University administration to whittle down the quality of teaching and it calls to question the integrity of the degree of this university under this current administration.

“We want to assure all students that any examination conducted under this current situation where about 70 percent of these courses have not been concluded is null and void.”