ASUU Strike: Meeting Ends In Deadlock

In spite of the intervention of the National Assembly over the ongoing indefinite strike action embarked upon by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), the union staged a walkout  on the Education Committee of the Senate insisting the strike action will continue.
The Tide was reliably informed that the Minister of Education, Prof Ragugayatu Rufai met with the Committee of Vice Chancellors in Abuja at the National Universities Commission headquarters on Tuesday where she pleaded with the striking union leaders to return to work while negotiations continue.
The source said Prof Rufai disclosed that the Federal Ministry of Education, along side ASUU National Executive Council  members thereafter met with the Senate and House Committee on Education on Wednesday.
The source disclosed that at the meeting with National Assembly, ASUU leadership  was excused by the Education Committee members for the committee to meet with the ministers and NUC Representatives. This, the source disclosed angered  ASUU leadership  to stage a walk out from the National Assembly, insisting the strike action continues.
The source said the meeting was inconclusive due to the walk out by ASUU leaders led by its National President, Dr Nasir Fagge.
The Tide was told that the meeting was aimed at finding   a quick solution to the impasse for normal academic  activities to resume throughout the nation’s universities.
Meanwhile ASUU National President, Dr Nasir Fagge has accused the NUC of violating the Act which established the Commission as most of the issues being clamoured for  by ASUU such as infrastructure, funding and others are the responsibility of the NUC as a regulatory body.
Dr Fagge said NUC has turned its focus on mundane issues rather than on core issues to promote better educational standards in the nation’s universities.
He said the NUC had relegated these responsibilities to the background and focus on mundane  conferences that on the long run were not helping the university education system.
Also, ASUU in the Rivers State  University of Science and Technology Nkpolu has threatened to sanction any of her members who engaged in any academic activities.
According to the ASUU Chairman RSUST, Dr Felix Igwe, the local chapter of ASUU is fully in support of the national strike and ASUU members in the university have fully complied.
He said ASUU in RSUST has been on strike since August 2012 over certain unresolved issues not relating to funding.
However,  investigation by The Tide revealed that lecturers in Faculties of Law, Science and Management are lecturing with full class attendance despite the strike action.