Strike: FG Excludes States Varsities for Pay Rise, ASUU Kicks

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The disagreement between the Federal Government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) may worsen as the lecture's union has rejected a proposed agreement from the Federal Ministry of Education because the agreement will not be binding on state universities. 

The spokesman for the Federal Ministry of Education, Ben Goong , in an interview with one of our correspondents in Abuja on Wednesday, explained that the Federal Government could not dictate to states on education as it is on the concurrent legislative list.

A committee led by the Pro-Chancellor of the Federal University of Lokoja, Prof. Nimi Briggs, had reportedly recommended a 180 per cent pay rise for lecturers, but the government was said to have favoured a 100 per cent increase.

It was gathered that the ministries of finance, education, labour and employment, Budget Office of the Federation, Office of the Head of Service of the Federation and the National Salaries, Income and Wages Commission were still working out the final details of the proposal.

The ASUU President, Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke, insisted that any agreement reached with the Federal Government would be binding on the states, thus opening another battle front between the union and the government.

Osodeke stated, ‘‘Whenever ASUU is on strike, it is not about state ASUU or federal ASUU. We have one ASUU representing all universities in the country; those schools that are not participating in the strike are not our members.

‘‘The issue of salary should be left to the union to decide because when there was minimum wage adjustment, both federal and state schools were a part of it; even TETFund, it funds both state and federal institutions. Do we have a federal NUC or state NUC?

‘’The issue of salary negotiation is exclusive to the union. If a state can increase it, good; but we have one university system in Nigeria, and the state cannot even pay lesser than what the Federal Government is paying.’’

Source: PUNCH