National President of ASUU, Dr. Nassir Fagge, said in an inaugural meeting with the NEEDS Assesement Implementation Committee that it will determine if the strike action will be called off.
"At the end f last week's meeting, we agreed that both parties return to their principals for further instruction. This is because the Federal Government's side was insisting that we renegotiate the 1999 agreement while ASUU is of the opinion that there is a need to first implement before we start talking of renegotiating an agreement.
Dr. Fagge said in an interview that the issue of the Earned Allowance is just one of the contentious issues which the Federal team wants renegotiated. He assured that the union will tie all lose ends such that there will be no need to raise the issue of the 1999 agreement ever again and that the Union's concern at present is the since there was an agreement which the government freely entered into, they should be honourable to first implement same before calling for renegotiation instead of saying it cannot be implemented. While the Federal Government insist that the earned allowance which the ASUU leadership said should be paid to all lecturers, it should only be given to those who have worked for it.
The position of the government has been that those who merited the earned allowance through hard work should enjoy the money. However, ASUU leadership who felt betrayed became infuriated with the position of the Federal Government.
Nigeria'ss Education Minister, Professor Ruqayyatu Rufa'i had disclosed that most of the demands by ASUU have been met by government. This incudes improved funding to university education as well as special high impact intervention by Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund).
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