MINORITY Whip in the House of Representatives, Mr. Samson Osagie, has described the recent threat by the supervising Minister of Education, Mr. Nyesom Wike, giving four days ultimatum to members of Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, to call off their strike or be sacked, as uncalled for.

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has slammed the Federal Government for issuing a sack threat against striking university teachers, saying the resort to such military-era tactics reflects the FG’s poverty of ideas in resolving the prolonged ASUU strike.

President Goodluck Jonathan literally disowned the seven-day ultimatum to striking university lecturers to return to work, yesterday, saying the Committee of Vice Chancellors (CVC) issued the deadline.
According to him, the supervising minister of education, Mr. Nyeson Wike, only made the ultimatum public.

The Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, has been given one week ultimatum to call off the ongoing strike.

ACADEMIC Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, University of Benin chapter, has called for the trial of the Kogi State governor, Alhaji Idris Wada and others connected to the accident that claimed one of their colleagues, Prof. Festus Iyayi.

Most lecturers who detest frequent indefinite strikes are pusillanimous about speaking out openly; they prefer to hide their real opinions rather than endure intemperate verbal attacks from vociferous pro-strike colleagues. In most universities nowadays during congress meetings to decide on strike, lecturers who refuse to jump uncritically into the ASUU bandwagon are derided as pro-government saboteurs.

The leadership of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, National Executive Committee weekend met in Kano. The secret meeting Vanguard gathered lasted from Friday night to the Saturday morning.

The Minister of Information, Mr Labaran Maku, has said that late Prof. Festus Iyayi will be missed for his contributions to the academic community, workers movement and Nigeria’s pro-democracy movement

LEADERS of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, yesterday, suspended indefinitely the union’s National Executive Council, NEC, meeting planned to hold in Kano over the tragic auto-crash that claimed the life of ASUU former President, Professor Festus Iyayi, on Tuesday morning.

THE latest round of strikes by the Academic Union of Universities (ASUU), has once again reached a dead end. After protracted negotiations, which ended with the Federal Government offering a concession that totalled N130 billion, which the union rejected insisting on full implementation of the 2009 agreement it signed, no further positive progress has been recorded towards ending the stand-off.

THE striking Academic Staff Union of Universities has expressed hope that their meeting with President Goodluck Jonathan tomorrow will bring mutually acceptable solution to the four months old strike which has paralysed the nation’s university education.

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal, Thursday declared that the Parliament was ready to amend any portion of the nation’s law to grant any request of appropriations from the Executive Arm of Government to accommodate the demands and end the lingering strike of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).

The face-off between striking university lecturers and the Federal Government entered a new phase, yesterday, as some lecturers took to the streets with both parties engaging in war of words. While the Federal Government accused members of ASUU of being heartless for the prolonged strike, the lecturers tackled President Goodluck Jonathan on his appeal to them to be patriotic enough and call off the strike.

The Education Rights Campaign (ERC) has said that it welcomes the decision of three trade unions – the Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT), the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) and the National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE) – to embark on solidarity strike actions to compel the Federal Government to honour agreements signed with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).

Members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities have been called upon to allow thousands of students roaming the streets to return their schools so that the union will not lose the sympathy of Nigerians.