FG ignores ASUU, orders VCs to reopen schools, resume lectures
By Emma Ogbuehi
The Federal Government has ordered the Vice-Chancellors of universities to re-open schools and allow students resume lectures.
The directive was contained in a letter signed by the Director, Finance and Accounts of National Universities Commission (NUC), Mr. Sam Onazi, on behalf of the Executive Secretary of the commission, Prof. Abubakar Rasheed, in Abuja on Monday.
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The letter, which was addressed to all Vice-Chancellors, Pro-Chancellors, and chairmen of governing councils of federal universities, called on them to re-open the universities.
It urged the VCs to “Ensure that Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) members immediately resume/commence lectures; restore the daily activities and routines of the various University campuses”.
The order comes on the heels of a recent judgement by the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN), which on September 21, ordered ASUU to suspend its seven-month-old strike.
The judge, Polycarp Hamman, gave the order in a ruling on the federal government’s application for an interlocutory injunction against the ongoing ASUU strike. Hamman, in granting the order, dismissed ASUU’s objection to the application.
Recall that ASUU had embarked on strike since February 14 to press home the demand for improved funding for universities, and a review of salaries for lecturers, among other issues.
Several meetings between the Union and the Federal Government have ended in deadlock due to non-agreement on the demands.
The association is demanding from FG the funding of the Revitalisation of Public Universities, Earned Academic Allowances, University Transparency Accountability Solution (UTAS) and promotion arrears.
Others are the renegotiation of the 2009 ASUU-FG Agreement and the inconsistency in Integrated Personnel Payroll Information System.
The federal government went to court to challenge the strike, but the Union insisted it would not resume but appeal the court’s ruling.
Femi Falana, human rights lawyer and senior advocate of Nigeria (SAN), one of the lawyers of the striking lecturers, stated that the National Industrial Court does not have jurisdiction to rule on the case between the federal government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
But apparently tired of the lingering strike and faced with restiveness by the students, the Federal Government through the National Universities Commission ordered vice-chancellors to re-open schools and allow students resume lectures.