All universities owned by the government in the country estimated to be around 150 under the aegis of the Academic Staff Union of University (ASUU) are heading for industrial action.
This is coming just as the federal government denied claims that it signed an agreement with the ASUU, claiming that the documents referenced by ASUU were draft proposals.
From Monday this week, various chapters of ASUU had called on the federal government to implement the renegotiation agreement entered into with the union to avoid industrial action, which will affect about two million students nationwide.
The nationwide protest undertaken by ASUU on Tuesday throughout all the campuses paralysed academic activities while members of the union expressed readiness to shut down institutions whenever a strike is declared by its leadership.
Top among a wide range of issues causing rift between the two parties include non-signing of the 2009 renegotiation agreement, non-payment of three-and-half month withheld salaries, non-payment of promotion arrears and non-release of revitalisation funds to make the university environment conducive.
Some branches of the union are also protesting the non-remittance of third-party deductions, the renaming of the University of Maiduguri after late President Muhammadu Buhari, N150,000 monthly retirement benefit to the professors, which has been described as a “national embarrassment”, and the Tertiary Institutions Staff Support Loan Scheme among others.
The Academic Staff Union of Universities, Kano Zone, urged the federal government to quicken action on the renegotiation of the 2009 ASUU-FGN Agreement.
The zonal coordinator, Mr Abdulkadir Muhammad, made the call at a news briefing in Kano.
He listed the issues of concern to include the sustainable funding of public universities; victimisation of ASUU members of LASU, and Prince Abubakar Audu University; and non-payment of 25/35 per cent salary arrears.
“The lecturers have run out of patience and evidently we cannot guarantee industrial harmony in our public universities.
“We call on our students, parents, civil society organisations, media and other well-meaning Nigerians to join hands with ASUU to save Nigerian public universities from imminent collapse,” he said.
“Many communities and property of innocent citizens had been vandalised and destroyed by criminal elements.
“We remind governments at all levels of their constitutional responsibility to protect lives and property of citizens,’’ Muhammad said.
