Strike: Workers Shut Down Activities at Varsities
For umpteen times, administrative activities in Nigerian universities have been shut down by the university workers, who yesterday embarked on a nationwide indefinite strike. Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU); Non Academic Staff Union of Universities and Associated Institutions (NASU) and the National Association of Academic Technologists (NAAT), yesterday grounded all activities on the campuses following failure of the Federal Government to honour its agreements with the workers.
The three non-teaching staff unions had embarked on an indefinite job boycott on September 11 to press home their demands for the implementation of the 2009 Agreements the Federal Government signed with the university workers.
These include the implementation of the December 5, 2016 judgement by the National Industrial Court on University Staff School; arrears of Earned Allowances owed members; payment of arrears of salary shortfall; and adequate funding of the university system. However, at the University of Ibadan (UI), administrative activities were yesterday paralysed as the unions’ local chapters joined the strike called by the national bodies of the unions.
Some lecturers only managed to hold some classes, while many students, especially those living off-campus, had hectic time getting to the campus as vehicular activities were hampered.
Many lecturers, it was learnt could not enter into the campus in their cars because all gates leading to the institution were barricaded with union vehicles until about 3 p.m. when only a lane at the second gate at Orogun area was opened.
The workers had been protesting against an alleged lopsided disbursement of earned allowances to them and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) in which N23billon released from the office of the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education, N15.10billion was allocated to ASUU, while about N7.929 billion was allocated to the three non-teaching staff unions. Ahead of the nationwide strike, the non-teaching staff at UI had last week kicked that “N1,626,117,386.20 had been paid into the TSA account of the university for academic staff, while the sum of N105,709,758.33 was paid for non-teaching staff.
It is the same story of woe at the University of Ilorin (UNILORN), where the unions after a congress of the Joint Action Committee joined the national strike which paralysed activities on campus. During the congress, the Vice-Chancellor of the university, Prof. Abdulkarem Age was said to have made spirited efforts to talk to the workers, but was rebuffed by the workers, who claimed they were merely obeying the directive of the national body. Also at the University of Lagos (UNILAG), the Chairman of SSANU, Comrade Adeniyi Adebisi, who confirmed that the chapter had joined the strike, insisted that it would be total until the Federal Government implement the agreements.
The unions at the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA) yesterday declared strike on campus, after their joint congress. The spokesman for the university, Mr. Adegbenro Adebanjo, said the unions had joined the strike, but that the university had just completed its semester examinations. Commenting on the strike, the SSANU Chairman for Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko (AAUA) in Ondo State, Mr. Tope Famuti, who also confirmed that the university had joined the strike, pointed out that it was a national issue, as the chapters were directed to join.
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