University students in Nigeria have done an about-turn on the Federal Government and Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) faceoff, saying at a press conference that they can no longer support the industrial action embarked on by the lecturers more than two months ago.
The lecturers had dropped tools and walked out of the classrooms to press home a demand that the FG fulfil a 2009 agreement reached on the payment of N92 billion earned allowances due them. The students, under the aegis of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), backed the decision at the time.
The lecturers had dropped tools and walked out of the classrooms to press home a demand that the FG fulfil a 2009 agreement reached on the payment of N92 billion earned allowances due them. The students, under the aegis of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), backed the decision at the time.
The government, on September 3, gave the striking lecturers N30 billion, and Governor Gabriel Suswam of Benue State, who heads the FG’s Needs Assessment Committee, said the remainder would be paid to the university lecturers after a verification of ASUU’s claims.
The lecturers rejected the N30 billion, insisting that the strike continues until full payment is made.
However, NANS national president, Yinka Gbadebo, on Wednesday, said as much as ASUU’s demands seemed justifiable, it is the students who are suffering the consequences of the strike the most, while the lecturers have little or no consequences to suffer.
Gbadebo urged the striking lecturers to accept the funds the Federal Government had already disbursed to the various universities in the country and resume academic activities while negotiations with government on the full implementation of the union’s demands are being made.
He also said that NANS had no moral obligation to support the struggles of ASUU, as it was on no record that the lecturers had ever supported any student struggles in the past, such as “unjust” school increment and the likes.
He charged ASUU to device other ways of getting its demands met, like taking the Federal Government to the court.
“I believe that they can get an injunction compelling the Federal Government to implement the agreement, if the court finds it meritorious,” he said.
He further said that the lecturers were more concerned about boosting their allowances.
“ASUU is deceiving us, they are fighting for their pockets,” Gbadebo declared.
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