The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has denied rumours that it demanded a fresh payment of N1 trillion from the federal government as a condition to end its ongoing strike.
ASUU embarked on a warning strike on February 14 after a two-day deliberation of the union’s national executive council.
The union had accused the government of reneging on the agreements it reached to suspend its last industrial action in 2020.
ASUU also argued that the latest strike followed the government’s attitude towards the renegotiation of salaries and allowances as well as the adoption of the University Transparency Accountability Solution (UTAS) payroll software.
The lecturers’ agitations cover the funding for the revitalisation of public universities and promotion arrears.
Other demands are the renegotiation of the 2009 ASUU-FGN agreement and the inconsistencies in the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS).
The federal government has since been meeting with the union to deliberate on ways to end the industrial action.
Emmanuel Osodeke, president of ASUU, who spoke to TheCable Lifestyle on Sunday, expressed concern that there has been little progress on the part of the government as regards its engagement with the union over the past couple of days.
Asked about the rumours that fresh monetary demands were made by the union, Osodeke said, “it’s not correct”.
“The outcome of that meeting was reported. Nobody mentioned N1 trillion. We don’t respond to all these rumours. What we’re demanding is coming after the government agreed to spend N1.3 trillion in 2009,” the ASUU president added.
“It was to be released N200 billion per year for five or six years. They didn’t do that which is what we’re asking for.”
