ASUU Strike 2013 Update: Union to Call off Strike Next Week, Report Says

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) came to an agreement this week to call off the five-month-long strike, and a report Saturday said it would finally come to an end next week.
ASUU Strike 2013 Update: Union to Call off Strike Next Week, Report Says
Jack Phillips
12/14/2013
Updated:
7/18/2015

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) came to an agreement with the Nigerian government to call off the five-month-long strike, and a report Saturday said it would finally come to an end next week.

According to The Punch newspaper, the ASUU indicated that next week the strike would end--several days Federal Government and the union on Wednesday agreed to sign a document in Abuja.

ASUU President Nasir Fagge did not elaborate on the contents of the document, but a Punch reporter said it had to do with a 2009 agreement that the union says was not implemented properly, leading to the strike in July.

The union complained that the government has not upgrade university facilities and has not improved the welfare of teachers, which was laid out in the 2009 deal.

Before the deal was signed this week, the Special Assistant on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe, showed there was proof that N200 billion was deposited into an account with the Central Bank of Nigeria.

But the Chairman of ASUU’s Obafemi Awolowo University, Prof. Akinola Adegbola, told the Punch there was no reason to stop the strike. However, he gave no indication that the strike would be prolonged.

Regarding the recent deal, Minister of Education Nyesom Wike told All Africa that “I am very pleased to announce that all contending issues between ASUU and the Federal Government have been resolved to the satisfaction of the parties.”

“Let me emphasize that we recognize and appreciate ASUU’s patriotic role and determination to ensure that our universities are well funded, resources provided and run like their counterparts in other parts of the world,” he added. “We are all partners in progress and there is no victor, no vanquish in a struggle of this nature and our goal remains noble and targeted at moving our nation forward.

Fagge said that the ASUU will now try to determine the quickest way to end the strike.

“If we ever think that not placing high premium on our university education out of the doldrums, I want to assure all of us that we will be deceiving ourselves because other countries that are ahead have made sure that their universities are making cutting edge research” he said, reported the Osun Defender.

Jack Phillips is a breaking news reporter with 15 years experience who started as a local New York City reporter. Having joined The Epoch Times' news team in 2009, Jack was born and raised near Modesto in California's Central Valley. Follow him on X: https://twitter.com/jackphillips5
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