SSANU, NASU urge FG to fast-track renegotiation to end strike in varsities

National President of SSANU, Mohammed Ibrahim

The Joint Action Committee of Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU) have appealed to the Federal Government renegotiation committee to fast track the meeting with Briggs Committee to resolve the crisis in the nation’s tertiary institutions.

National President of SSANU, Mohammed Ibrahim, said the union was getting weary at the slow pace of the meeting, warning that if renegotiation was not concluded, the strike would not be called off.

The Briggs Committee, which commenced meeting with the four university unions, including Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), National Association of Academic Technologists (NAAT), SSANU and NASU, two weeks ago, is saddled with the responsibility of renegotiating the 2009 agreements the Federal Government signed with striking unions.

On March 7, 2022, the Federal Government inaugurated a seven-member committee to look into the renegotiation of the 2009 agreement reached with the unions.

The committee has the Pro-Chancellor, Alex Ekwueme Federal University Ndufu-Alike, Prof Nimi Briggs, as its chairman.

Ibrahim said: “After the inaugural meeting, we had a major meeting and we have not been invited again. They are meeting all other unions. We are also tired because without these agreements being completed, we cannot call off the strike.

“The meeting should be fast-tracked. It is the solution to the renegotiation that is what we are expecting so that we will know that we are done and it is over. The Federal Government should hasten up. People are suffering; they should fast track things so that we can go back to work.”

Ibrahim added that the Briggs committee would conduct a test on the Universities Peculiar Personnel Payroll System developed by SSANU.

SSANU’s strike started with a warning strike on March 27 and extended after the government failed to meet their demands during the period.

The union’s demands included the inconsistencies in payment with the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS), non-payment of earned allowances, non-payment of arrears of national minimum wage and its consequential adjustment.

Others are poor funding of state universities, delay in the renegotiation of the 2009 agreements, non-release of white papers of visitation panels, and non-payment of retirement benefits to outgone members, among others.

JAC had resolved that following the failure of the government to invite the leadership for a meeting, the strike should be extended by another two weeks before an indefinite and total strike would be declared.

He said the strike was borne out of the non-responsive nature of the government and its officials to matters affecting members of NASU and SSANU, and by extension, the entire university system.

According to him, “Arising from the last memorandum and following up on issues, we have written no less than 10 letters or reminders to the government to no avail, not even an acknowledgement.

“It was at the end of all these reminders with no acknowledgement by the government that we were left with no other resort but to embark on strike.

“ Prior to the strike, due process was followed and the notice was issued in line with extant laws.

“Shamefully and painfully, there was no attempt by the government to intercept or even invite the unions to a meeting.”

He, however, gave conditions upon which their industrial action might be suspended.

He insisted that government should jettison the IPPIS for the University Peculiar Personnel and Payroll System developed by non-academic unions.

He also insisted that N30 billion as Earned Allowances, which was a product of the Federal Government/NASU and SSANU 2009 agreement, should be paid immediately.

He said the MoU had stated that the criteria for disbursement would be according to the computation from each University and inter-university centre, in line with what was outstanding for each staff.

“Sadly, when the said sum was released, it was evident that rather than adopt the submissions of universities and inter-university centres, the Ministry of Education in releasing N22 billion, adopted a lopsided sharing formula of 75 per cent for ASUU and 25 per cent for other unions,’’ he said.