ASUU, SSANU, NASU Issue Fresh Ultimatum to FG: Meet Our Demands or Face Total Shutdown

The leadership of all tertiary education-based unions in Nigeria has unanimously issued a four-week ultimatum to the Federal Government to resolve all pending demands and lingering issues causing industrial disharmony in the nation’s education sector or risk a total shutdown.

The ultimatum emerged from a unified front initiated and facilitated by the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Joe Ajaero, bringing together all tertiary education unions affiliated with the Congress.

The unions: Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU), Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU), National Association of Academic Technologists (NAAT), Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP), Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Polytechnics (SSANIP), Colleges of Education Academic Staff Union (COEASU), among others announced the four-week ultimatum at a joint press briefing in Abuja.

They vowed to henceforth resist the government’s divide-and-rule tactics in addressing issues affecting tertiary education and its workforce.

Speaking at the briefing, the NLC President, Comrade Ajaero, said: “The NLC, after extensive deliberations with the unions in tertiary institutions on finding lasting solutions to the perennial problems in that sector, resolved to ensure we put an end to the recurring challenges these institutions face. We have decided to establish a framework for engagement towards the implementation of agreements, outstanding agreements, and sustainable funding of education in line with the UNESCO recommendation of 25 to 26 percent budgetary allocation to education, as well as a review of wage structures and allowances in tertiary institutions and respect for trade union rights and collective bargaining.”

Ajaero expressed frustration over government representatives who attend meetings without proper mandates, saying: “We discovered that those government officials sent to meetings go there without mandates. Henceforth, no trade union, whether in tertiary institutions or elsewhere, will attend any meeting with government representatives who lack a mandate. You sign an agreement and then go back to renege, never again. We will not condone this act. All over the world, agreements are held in very serious regard.”

He announced that a coordinated team would be established to drive a national campaign on the matter. “To conclude it,” he said, “we have decided to give the Federal Government four weeks to conclude all negotiations in this sector. They have started talks with ASUU, but the problems go beyond ASUU or one union. All other unions are equally involved. That is why we are extending this to four weeks. If, after four weeks, these negotiations are not concluded, the organs of the NLC will meet and take nationwide action that will involve all workers and unions across the country so we can get to the root of this issue. The era of signing agreements, reneging, and threatening the unions involved has come to an end.”

He further emphasized: “The so-called policy of ‘no work, no pay’ should henceforth be ‘no pay, no work.’ You can’t benefit from an action you instigated. We have discovered that 90 percent of strike actions in this country are caused by failure to obey agreements. You can’t refuse to obey agreements and then punish the other party. It’s a matter of cause and effect, the person who caused the problem should be ready to bear the consequences. You can’t beat the child and ask the child not to cry.”

Following Ajaero’s remarks, ASUU President, Prof. Christopher Piwuna, said the alliance became necessary because the government has consistently reneged on agreements and employed divisive tactics in its dealings with unions in the sector. He pledged ASUU’s full commitment to the “one-voice, one-action” alliance aimed at compelling the government to honour its agreements and treat workers fairly. Prof. Piwuna also hinted that as ASUU’s current warning strike approaches its expiration, the union’s next course of action will be integrated into the alliance’s four-week ultimatum to ensure a unified and coordinated response across all tertiary education unions.

On his part, SSANU National President, Comrade Mohammed Ibrahim, reaffirmed his union’s total support for the alliance and its unity of purpose. He commended the NLC for its wisdom in bringing the unions together under one accord, describing the move as a step towards progress. Ibrahim stressed that the unions are partners in national development and in ensuring the improvement of Nigeria’s tertiary education sector, but lamented the government’s continued disregard for agreements. “The unions are frustrated by the government’s attitude and behavior in adhering to and implementing agreements it freely signed with us,” he said, adding that the alliance has become a necessary instrument to drive progress and accountability in the system.

Leaders of NASU, NAAT, ASUP, SSANIP, COEASU, and other tertiary education-based unions also reaffirmed their commitment to the alliance. They jointly condemned the government’s divide-and-rule tactics in its engagements and declared readiness to abide by the NLC’s guidance and direction regarding the four-week ultimatum and the possible nationwide industrial action that may follow if the government fails to act within the stipulated period.