Ignore ASUU’s demands, NASU, NAAT, SSANU tell FG

* NON Teaching staff in tertiary institutions in Nigeria, have advised the Federal Government to ignore the Memorandum of Understanding it entered into with the striking lecturers on the aegis of Academic Staff Union of Universities,
ASUU, saying its implementation would lead to another round of crisis.
The Non Teaching Staff comprising Non-Academic Staff Union of Education and Associated Institutions, NASU, National Association of Academic Technologists, NAAT, and Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities,SSANU rather
advised government to implement the 2009
agreements it entered with the unions in tertiary institutions.
In a statement signed by Samson Ugwoke,
President of SSANU and spokesperson of NAAT, SSANU and NASU tited, ‘Our stand on the on-going ASUU strike’, the unions sympathised with ASUU
but noted that the MoU was not in the best
interest of the education sector.
Cross section of stakeholders at a meeting to review the ongoing strike by ASUU held at the Trenchard Hall of the University of Ibadan on Monday. Photo by Dare Fasube
It stated “We sympathise and solidarise with our sister union, ASUU over their long drawn struggle
for the welfare of their members. We urged the
government to build more confidence in
governance, at all times, by respecting
agreements it freely enters into with unions.
”However, we caution that any settlement of the
current dispute must take into account the
interests of all the university-based unions (NAAT,
SSANU, NASU and ASUU). The three Non-Teaching
Staff Unions of NAAT, SSANU and NASU are
opposed to any extraneous demands by either
ASUU or any group in the university which are
prejudicial to the welfare of our members.
”Our stand is that government should jettison the
so called ASUU’s Memorandum of Understanding
(MOU) and concentrate on full implementation of
the 2009 FGN/Unions agreements which border on
staff conditions of service and welfare, and
increased funding to universities.
”The MOU being referred to by ASUU is for their
selfish end and it is bound to generate more crises
in the university sub-sector.
The Non-Teaching Staff Unions in the universities
will stoutly resist any attemp t to ‘sell’ the
universities to ASUU.
”All university based unions signed agreements in
2009 with the government, it is therefore advised
that all contentious issues in all the agreements
be settled holistically to avoid a ‘relay race’ in
strike actions in the universities.
”The implementation of any union’s MOU should
not come in between the period of
implementation of signed agreements rather, such
items in the MOU should wait to be re-negotiated
in another agreement(s).”