Months after shaking hands on a deal that resulted in the suspension of the long-drawn strike, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has said that universities in the country would be shut due to the failure of the federal government to come through on its promises.
It disclosed this in a statement Sunday, stating that the federal government is to “blame” if universities are shut down again.
Part of the concessions that led to the suspension of the strike was the payment of all withheld salaries of members of the union not enrolled in the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information system (IPPIS).
However, the union has come out to say that the federal government has “reneged on its part”, as thousands of its members are still owed salaries.
It noted that the FG had dismissed the deployment of the University Transparency and Accountability Solution (UTAS) platform proposed by the union for the payment of salaries.
Rather, according to the union, unpaid members of ASUU are “being coerced” by government agents to get on the IPPIS platform to receive their salaries.
The statement read, “While ASUU as a union, and her members as individuals in various branches have remained faithful to this agreement by returning to classes and performing their respective duties, the Federal Government, true to type, has reneged on its part.
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“Contrary to FGN affirmation of its commitment to pay all withheld salaries of ASUU members who have not enrolled in the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information system (IPPIS), three months after the suspension of Strike, thousands of ASUU members across various branch are still being owed salaries.
“Instead of deploying the University Transparency and Accountability Solution (UTAS) software developed by ASUU, which has been adjudged effective for payment of salaries, some of our members are still being denied their salaries and others are being coerced by agents of the government to register on the repressive IPPIS for payment of salaries.
“The Union ASUU and her members are made to suffer from all the aforementioned attacks by the federal government while the public expects our members, some of who now live on the charity of family members and colleagues for survival to use their personal resources to discharge their duties diligently in the universities.
“These harsh conditions would have terrible consequences on public tertiary education in Nigeria and when push eventually comes to shove, as it definitely will in no distant future, the Nigerian public should accordingly blame the Federal Government for its insincerity.
“Blame the federal government of Nigeria if the universities are shut down again.”
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ASUU had embarked on 9-month strike action following the federal government’s refusal to accept their tabled demands.
After a roundtable chat with the FG, the union decided to suspend the strike.
The conditions discussed in the meeting were said to have been unfulfilled on the part of the federal government just weeks after the agreement.
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