ASUU STRIKE UPDATE: ASUU May Call Off Strike Next Week, Demands Slash Of Lawmakers’ Salaries By 2014

* THE about five-month-old strike embarked upon
by members of Academic Staff Union of
Universities (ASUU) may be called off next
week.
It was gathered that the union would conclude
consultations with its members and may resume
class soon.
The union, it was also gathered, had asked the
Federal Government to slash across board,
salaries of National Assembly members,
ministers and other political office holders by
2014.
The demand was placed on the Federal
Government at a marathon meeting leadership
of the union held with President Goodluck
Jonathan and other key government officials at
the Presidential Villa, on Monday. ASUU
president, Dr Nasir Isa Fagge, could not confirm
this, as calls put to him on his mobile line were
unsuccessful, but ASUU source told the Nigerian
Tribune in Abuja that the demand formed part of
their deliberations on Monday to early hours of
Tuesday.
The source said ASUU had suggested this based
on the complaint by the Federal Government
that it had no money to implement all aspects
of the 2009 agreement as demanded. Nigerian
Tribune, however, gathered that branch
chairmen of the ASUU had been directed to brief
their members on the offer by President
Jonathan, which is largely an addition of N20
billion to the N200 billion already agreed upon
with Vice President Namadi Sambo to be
released to universities annually. According to
the fresh pact, the Federal Government had
agreed to release N220 billion yearly to the
public universities, beginning from 2014 till the
next five years. It was also gathered that the
meeting adopted the accord struck by the vice
president with the union, on the need to
increase the N30 billion already released for the
payment of academic earned allowance to N40
billion. According to sources, government also
agreed that the N40 billion should be regarded
only as first instalment, and not a once-and-for-
all payment. At the meeting, the government
assured that it would, among other things,
revamp the public universities by ensuring that
all those issues that always led to strike were
dealt with once and for all. ASUU president had,
after the meeting, told reporters that his team
would take back the message of President
Jonathan to varsity teachers before a decision
would be taken on the next line of action.