…As ASUU calls for revocation of licences
By Ola Ajayi
IBADAN—ADMINISTRATIVE and academic activities in federal and state-owned universities across the country may be paralysed by members of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, SSANU, any moment from now.

Also the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, has called for revocation of the licences of state universities that are yet to implement the agreement between the union and the Federal Government.

This indication emerged when the Chairman of the union in the University of Ibadan, Comrade Oluwadare Omolona, said the 21-day ultimatum given to the state governments to implement the payment of the new salary scale had lapsed.

He said the union is waiting for directive from the national secretariat of the union to know the next line of action.

While speaking exclusively with Vanguard, the union’s chairman said, “The state universities have not been implementing the new salary and that was why we gave them a 21-day ultimatum that lapsed yesterday.

“Ordinarily, we are supposed to commence strike now, like ASUU did. ASUU has been fighting on the same thing. Because we negotiated together, we are going to join hands with our counterparts in state universities”, he said.

He used the opportunity to plead with the Federal Government to implement the five allowances in the agreement.

He alleged that government had been foot-dragging on the agreement.  He said, “Government should help us stop agitation. On monetisation, some universities have been paid now, but in the University of Ibadan, we have not fully been paid.

It started coming in trickles yesterday, we believe by the end of this week, everybody would have been paid”.
However, he commended the government for its efforts so far but it was iet to satisfy the union.

“On the 65 years, the government has been dragging the issue unnecessarily. It is not a new agreement, it has been in the 2001 agreement. Now, that the government said it wanted it implemented, I am thinking it should be implemented immediately, but it has not been implemented up to now”, he stated.

Continuing, he explained that the government should try to honour agreements.
“ When you sign an agreement with a union, you don’t allow it to linger on because at the end of the day, the arrears you are going to pay will be more, ”he advised. .

“Though, looking at it more closely, the government has been trying but it has not satisfied us. The implementation committee has not been meeting regularly. The committee is not functioning as expected otherwise these allowances would have  been paid. So, the union is not happy.

“Even the salary the government is paying, since January,  it has been paying us erratically. The government would pay half salary and say it would pay the arrears later. That is what they have been doing since January. They paid the half salary last month, the university had to look for the balance, he complained.

The Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, has called for revocation of the licences of state universities that are yet to implement the agreement between the union and the Federal Government.
The call was made by the Zonal Chairman of the union, Professor Akin Ajisegiri,  at the University of Ibadan yesterday.
Speaking through  the UI Chairman of ASUU, Dr. Ademola Aremu, he  said in alternative,  the National Universities Commission, NUC, should delay accreditation of such universities.
According to him, the call became necessary in view of the seeming delay by the state universities, especially in the South East in implementing the said agreement.
As a result of the non-implementation of the agreement, Dr. Aremu stated that the academic calendar of the affected states.
He said the agreement was predicated on the 2007 agitation for an improved university education in the country.
He stated that the state governors of Ogun, Oyo and Lagos should also be sanctioned for their suspicious tardiness in implementing the working conditions.
Aremu used the forum to condemn the alleged display of tribal sentiment by the Anambra State Governor, Mr. Peter Obi, when he reportedly asked that the proceedings of the ASUU/South East governors’ meeting be conducted in Igbo language.
He argued that since the NUC is saddled with the responsibility of regardless of the ownership structure, it should sanction state governors who establish varsities on political considerations.
He added that despite all entreaties to make the defaulting states see reason for implementing the agreement, they remained adamant