ASUU Holds Crucial Meeting With FG By 5pm Today – Gives Conditions To Suspend Strike

The Academic Staff Union of Universitis (ASUU) is expected to hold a crucial meeting with the federal government of Nigeria on Monday evening in a bid to end the ongoing strike in public universities.

The last meeting between the two parties, ended in deadlock on November 15, despite the meeting lasting for six hours.

However, the President of  ASUU, Prof Biodun Ogunyemi, in an interview with The Punch on Sunday, confirmed the union’s meeting with the Federal Government would take place on Monday.

Ogunyemi said, “There is supposed to be a meeting tomorrow evening (Monday). It all depends on the way government approaches it. If they invite us further, we will go. It also depends on what they put on the table. We met them briefly and we agreed to meet on Monday (today).

“We met with the Minister of Education (Adamu Adamu) on Thursday and it was a short meeting. We have given them our terms. I am not representing myself but those who have given us  a clear mandate and we shall abide by the terms.”

The terms and conditions to call off strike

Ahead of the meeting, Premium Times also quoted its President as saying that ASUU has given conditions upon which the current industrial action will be suspended.

According to the news outlet, the purpose of the meeting slated for 5 p.m. is to find a lasting solution to the ongoing strike.

Ogunyemi, who stated the conditions in an interview on Sunday night, said it was unfortunate that Nigerian leaders “like to move in circles without resolving the challenges rocking the system”.

“Some of these conditions, ASUU said, include the full implementation of the Memorandum of Action (MoA) the two parties willingly signed in October 2017.”

“So the MoA must be implemented fully before we can even talk of suspension of the strike. If they implement the outstanding issues in the MoA fully and change the leadership of the negotiating team, then we can go back to the negotiation,” Mr Ogunyemi said.