FG Assures ASUU Of Addressing Problems Bedeviling Education Sector

To avert industrial action in the nation’s university system, the Federal Government has promised to give the sector a new face lift.

Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman made the promise in Abuja during a stakeholder meeting with leadership of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU.

Prof. Mamman expressed optimism that all issues raised would be amicably resolved.

“A lot of consultations will still continue on some information we don’t have which are beyond the scope of the ministry and which will require us to connect with our colleagues in other ministries.

“The most important thing is that we had a very good meeting and agreed to continue with the consultations to hopefully overcome the problems bedevilling education in Nigeria,” he said.

On his part, the President of ASUU, Prof Emmanuel Osodeke
said the negotiation process had begun while hoping that the Federal Government would follow up on what had been agreed on.

“What is important is that we have started the process and our prayers is that we resolve it for the interest of our young men and the interest of the nation .

“Today we are having the first formal meeting,
the government has spent one year in office and we have not been called for any formal meeting.

“This process we have started, we are going to set deadlines, we are going to meet to look at what has been done on those issues, we hope the process will continue.”

Some of the demands of ASUU include the need for university autonomy in Nigeria, renegotiation of the 2009 FGN/ASUU Agreement, payment of all the backlog of Earned Academic Allowance and outstanding salaries among others.

Nkiru Okeke, Edited By Grace Namiji