JUST-IN:Universities to be shutdown as ASUU sets to declare Indefinite strike.

Academic Activities in all Nigerian Universities is set to experience another shut as the branches of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) nationwide have commenced consultative meetings to take a position on the consequences of the ultimatum earlier issued by the Nigerian government.

Sources within the leadership of the union noted that ASUU chapters have commenced voting processes to decide on the next line of action after the Nigerian government failed to meet the union’s demands after two ultimatums.

A source within the leadership of the ASUU, who pleaded Annoymity to speak on the matter, Stated that the ASUU chapters are expected to decide before Tuesday after which the National Executive Council (NEC) of the union will meet to ratify the chapters’ decisions.

The source confirmed that his chapter, has met and favoured the strike option. “We met and we voted in favour of the strike,” the source told our reporter.

A chairperson of another chapter also confirmed to our reporter that the congresses to decide on the strike action are being held across different universities but declined further comments.

Recall that ASUU had issued a 14days ultimatum to FG to meets its demands after which the earlier ultimatum had expired.

The union of academics is at loggerheads with the Nigerian government over the renegotiation of the 2009 agreement. The agreement contains the conditions of services, wages and allowances of Nigerian academics. The agreement is meant to be updated periodically but negotiations have stalled for close to a decade.

ASUU wants the government to conclude the renegotiation of the 2009 FGN/ASUU Agreement based on the Nimi Briggs Committee’s Draft Agreement of 2022.

The union also wants the government to release the three-and-a-half months’ salaries withheld during the 2022 strike action.

Other issues, as listed by the union, are: “the release of unpaid salaries for staff on sabbatical, part-time, and adjunct appointments affected by the IPPIS; release of outstanding third-party deductions such as check-off dues and cooperative contributions; funding for the revitalisation of public universities, partly captured in the 2023 Federal Government Budget; payment of Earned Academic Allowances (EAA), partly captured in the 2023 Federal Government Budget; proliferation of universities by federal and state governments; implementation of the reports of visitation panels to universities; illegal dissolution of governing councils; and University Transparency and Accountability Solution (UTAS) as a replacement for IPPIS."