Press Statement:
TEXT OF A PRESS CONFERENCE BY THE ACADEMIC STAFF UNION OF
UNIVERSITIES (ASUU), YOLA ZONE, HELD ON MONDAY 20TH MAY, 2024,
AT MODIBBO ADAMA UNIVERSITY (MAU), YOLA.
Protocols
Gentlemen of the Press,
The Yola Zone of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) is made
up of Adamawa State University (ADSU), Mubi, Federal University Gashua
(FUGA), Modibbo Adama University (MAU), Yola, Taraba State University (TSU),
Jalingo, University of Maiduguri (UNIMAID) and Yobe State University (YSU),
Damaturu.
The zone condemns in total the unprecedented creeping fascism, that has infiltrated public universities in Nigeria and as well address fundamental issues which posed serious threat to the foundation of academic freedom, rule of law and democratic principles, of the Nigerian public universities.
The main driver for the eight months’ strike action in 2022 was to compel the
FGN to implement the Memorandum of Action (MoA) of 7th February, 2019. The
Union is not asking for anything new but implementation of the Agreement.
The MoA duly signed by both FGN and ASUU contains few issues amongst which include Revitalization fund for public universities, Renegotiation of the 2009 Agreement, Earned Academic Allowances and proliferation of state universities and governance issues in them. Remember, all these issues have timelines attached to them as promised by the FGN but all to no avail, most of these times have elapsed and there is nothing to show for it.
Renegotiation of the 2009 Agreement
The 2009 Agreement between FGN and ASUU aimed at addressing various issues in Nigerian universities.
You will recall that after two years of negotiations, the FGN and ASUU reached an agreement in 2009. This agreement covers:
a) Conditions of service for university lecturers (salaries, allowances like EAA.)
b) Funding for universities
c) University autonomy and academic freedom
d) Other matters
The single Term of Reference of the Committee was to re-negotiate the 2001
FGN/ASUU Agreement and enter into a workable Agreement. In the course of
discussion, the Committee agreed that the essence of the Re-negotiation was to:
i. reverse the decay in the University System, in order to reposition it for
greater responsibilities in national development;
ii. reverse the brain drain, not only by enhancing the remuneration of academic staff, but also by disengaging them from the encumbrances of a unified civil
service wage structure;
iii. restore Nigerian Universities, through immediate, massive, and sustained
financial intervention; and,
iv. ensure genuine university autonomy and academic freedom.
Gentlemen of the Press,
All efforts by the Union and the promise made by FGN to address contending
issues on the renegotiation have not yielded any result. For the avoidance of
doubts, in the years 2017, 2018, 2020, and 2022, the 2009 agreement was
renegotiated with the government’s representatives, Dr. Wale Babalakin, Prof. Munzali Jubril, and the late Nimi Briggs, heading the government’s teams,
respectively.
The Nimi Briggs Committee concluded the renegotiation with the Union, awaiting the government’s approbation. Obviously, the refusal of the government to sign the renegotiated agreement has suffocated the Nigerian public Universities. The recent wage award by FGN was never a component of our
renegotiated agreement; the union demands full implementation of the Nimi Briggs Committee report.
EARNED ACADEMIC ALLOWANCE
Gentlemen of the Press, you may recall that the FGN in 2023 budgeted N50 billion for the payment of the backlog of our members’ EAA and promised to mainstream the EAA into our salaries, but that has not seen the light of day. The failure of the federal and state governments to mainstream EAA into the salaries as of 2022, as contained in the 2020 MoA between ASUU and FGN, is a clear manifestation of the government’s bad intentions towards our members. The story is not different from that of state universities. Adamawa State University (ADSU), for instance, has not been paid EAA from 2016-2023. Taraba state University EAA has not been paid from 2015 to 2024. Likewise, Yobe State government has not paid Yobe State University academic staff their EAA for 2020/2021 and 2022/2023 sessions.
UNPAID SALARIES
FGN is still withholding the three-and half-month salaries of our members, even though we have covered the work for the period during which our union was on strike. Most of the public universities in Nigeria today are either in the first or second semester of 2023/2024 academic session, impliedly, no skipped or cancelled session was recorded, and by September/October 2024, universities will be in the 2024/2025 academic year. Therefore, it is illogical, unfair, and illegal not to pay ASUU members their rightfully earned withheld salaries.
Similarly, our members at state Universities are owed salaries. For example, members in ADSU Mubi are owed 39 months’ arrears of consequential salary adjustment; members in TSU, Jalingo are owed four whole months of unpaid salaries and seven months arrears of fractional salaries paid to them, while in
YSU, Damaturu, the consequential salary arrears have not been paid for 49 months since the implementation of the 2019 minimum wage, which was
implemented by Yobe State Government in January, 2024.
AUTONOMY
The union believes and emphasise that it will amount to deception taken too far
if the government fails to revert to quarterly releases of varsity funds to enable the Universities to design and implement their payment plans.
CORE CURRICULUM MINIMUM ACADEMIC STANDARD (CCMAS)
The use of CCMAS is a usurpation of the powers of the university Senate, which,
by law and practice,should superintend curriculum review, examinations, and the award of degrees and certificates in each university. Unifying academic curricula across Nigerian universities is counterproductive; it erodes competition, innovation, and creativity. University Senates, who are statutorily responsible for academic program development, are left to work on only 30% of the CCMAS. The imposition of CCMAS has eroded university autonomy and academic freedom.
RENEGOTIATION
Members of ASUU have been on the same salary for more than 15 years. The last time our salaries were reviewed was in 2009. Lecturers in Nigeria are the least paid in Africa because our impoverished pay package is far below Africa’s average, not to mention the global average. Nigerian academics are the worst paid in the world, as a professor at a bar earns less than $300 per month at the current rate of N1,450 per dollar.
Consequently, we are calling on the FGN to urgently commence the processes that would lead to the completion and implementation of the draft agreement reached by the Joint Committee led by Nimi Briggs. The process for the renegotiation lasted for only six months but was truncated by the then Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, and his co-travelers. Further foot dragging on the issues may compel our members to take drastic measures, which may not be good
for industrial harmony.
Dropping out of universities.
We are optimistic that the Nigerian government has ample resources to fund education better. It is a matter of priority.
Similarly, the union reiterates in unequivocal terms our rejection of the students’ loan scheme, which to the union is an IMF/World Bank ideology intended to bastardize our educational system and cripple the future of the Nigerian youth.
Instead of a loan, the government should give students study grants, just as our
union gives scholarships to students across the nation.
CONCLUSION
Conclusively, all the issues that have been putting ASUU at loggerheads with the government have been in the best interest of Nigeria and its people, not ASUU members alone. Our union is tired of dwelling on the same number of issues year in and year out, negotiating and renegotiating, with mutual agreements reached and signed on each occasion, but with the government consistently reneging on its own terms.
The union is in a patriotic struggle to reposition the Nigerian university system. Hence, we are calling on all well-meaning patriotic Nigerians, the media, labour movement, students’ organizations, and civil society to join force with ASUU in the rejection of the government’s master-slave posture on labour matters and unionism.
Together we BARGAIN, divided we BEG!
Prof. Dani Mammam
Zonal Co-ordinator
Yola Zone
