BEVERLY HILLS, CA, December 17, (THEWILL) – The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) Tuesday officially called off its five month old strike.
The declaration was made by ASUU President, Dr. Nasir Fagge after a meeting of the association’s executives in Minna. The decision to end the strike was taken after ASUU and the federal government signed a new agreement on December 11 2013.
UPDATE:
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), on Tuesday, finally called off its six-month industrial action and trade dispute with the Federal Government.
Announcing the decision at a media briefing at the Federal University of Technology, Minna Minna, the Niger State capital, after a 15-hour National Executive Council (NEC) meeting, ASUU President, Dr. Nasir Fagge, directed members of the Union to resume work immediately.
Advising the Federal Government to be honorable to fulfill its own part of the bargain, saying ASUU has fulfilled its own, Fagge said: “Finally, NEC resolved to suspend the strike embarked upon on 1st July 2013, with effect from Tuesday, December 17th, 2013 and directs its branches to resume work forthwith.
“We are going back to rekindle the motivation and aspiration in our members to strive to encourage our students to excel, all in its expectation that Government will sincerely honor its own part of the bargain.
ASUU expects the Government to implement faithfully the resolutions reached and signed.”
He assured that despite the long strike action and the lost time in the University system, ASUU would work towards making it up for the students without compromising any of its standards.
He also expressed gratitude for what he described as the open demonstration of support from the students towards the union during the strike, saying “Though some attempts to use divisive tactics to weaken our members’ resolve were employed, these attempts were defeated by the students themselves.’’
He also condemned ‘’Vice Chancellors who made efforts to undermine and, in some cases, attempted, to break ASUU’s strike,” as he dedicated the outcome of the struggle and the future of the Union to late Professor Festus Iyayi.
“We dedicate the outcome of the struggle and the Union’s future to late Professor Festus Iyayi, our Past President, an outstanding intellectual who lost his life in ASUU’s struggle for freedom, justice and well-being for the underprivileged in Nigeria,” he said.
He however warned that none of ASUU members should be victimised in anyway for whatever role they played in the process leading to the resolutions and agreements.
ASUU declared a trade dispute with the Federal Government six months ago over Federal Government’s refusal to honour an agreement it entered with the university lecturers in 2009.
