ASUU Begins Nationwide Strike, Today

Rivers State Commissioner of Information and Communications, Mrs Ibim Semenitari (middle) assisted by General Manager, RSNC, Mr Celestine Ogolo (left), member, House of Representatives, Hon. Ogbonna Nwuke (2nd left) and other dignitaries, cutting the 40th Anniversary Cake of the Rivers State Newspaper Corporation, during the Gala/Awards Nite, at Hotel Presidential, Port Harcourt, last Friday.

Academic activities in universities across the country have been paralysed as the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) embarks on a nation-wide industrial action from today.

The industrial action was the outcome of the National Executive Council (NEC) meeting of the union which met last Tuesday to Thursday at the University of Port Harcourt. The NEC reviewed among other things, the level of implementation of the 2009 ASUU/FG Agreement, the extent of compliance with the 2011 ASUU/FG Memorandum of Understanding on Implementation of the agreement, dissolution of universities’ governing councils, removal of fuel subsidy and the state of the nation.

Declaring the indefinite work to rule action yesterday in Port Harcourt, the ASUU NEC led by its President, Prof Ukachukwu Awuzie called on all members of the union in all branches nationwide to proceed on “a total, comprehensive and indefinite strike beginning from midnight of Sunday, 4th December, 2011.

“For the avoidance of doubt, a total, comprehensive and indefinite strike means: no teaching, no examination, no grading of scripts, no project supervision, no inaugural lectures, no appointment and promotion meeting, no statutory meetings or other meetings directed by governments or their agents,” ASUU said.

It would be recalled that on Monday October 17, 2011, ASUU addressed a national press conference over these vexing issues and granted Federal Government’s request for additional two months to address the concerns. At the expiration of the two months of grace, ASUU and the government could not reach any acceptable ground, hence, the strike.

The objectives of the said agreement, according to text of a press briefing released yesterday in Port Harcourt were to arrest the rot and reverse the decay in the university system, to reverse the braindrain by enhancing the remuneration of academic staff and disengaging them from the encumbrances of a unified civil service wage structure, to ensure university autonomy and academic freedom and to restore Nigerian universities through immediate, massive and sustained financial intervention.

ASUU also accused the Federal Government of refusing to implement the core component of the 2009 ASUU/FG agreement after more than two years of its signing, having sacked the Implementation Monitoring Committee that serves as the forum for dialogue with ASUU.

Commenting on the state of the nation, the union further accused the Nigerian ruling class of surrendering the fate of the present and future Nigerians to the grips of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, stressing that the present federal Economic Team led by the Finance Minister, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, was the plot of the global liberal powers as against the interest of Nigerians.

“With the team, the government of President Jonathan began an aggressive pursuit of privatisation, commercialisation, deregulation and devaluation with unparalled zeal, with a view to completing the agenda begun since the days of the Obasanjo Presidency,” said the NEC.

ASUU urged students, parents, the labour, civil society organisations, professional organisations and all individuals who value the development of Nigeria to prevail on the federal government to honour the 2009 agreement with ASUUas the only option that can stop the industrial action.

Chris Oluoh

Rivers State Commissioner of Information and Communications, Mrs Ibim Semenitari (middle) assisted by General Manager, RSNC, Mr Celestine Ogolo (left), member, House of Representatives, Hon. Ogbonna Nwuke (2nd left) and other dignitaries, cutting the 40th Anniversary Cake of the Rivers State Newspaper Corporation, during the Gala/Awards Nite, at Hotel Presidential, Port Harcourt, last Friday.