The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), following a long deliberation amongst its stakeholders, has extended the ongoing strike by 12 weeks.
Driving the news
Following an emergency meeting of the union’s National Executive Council (NEC) including principal officers and branch chairmen in Abuja, running from Sunday evening till Monday morning, the union decided to embark on a 12 weeks strike.
State of play
ASUU and the Nigerian government have been at loggerheads over several unresolved issues majorly centered on the non-payment of agreed funds. While ASUU accused the Nigerian government of not paying enough attention to the country’s educational sector, the federal government claims it cannot afford ASUU’s demands.
- Negotiations between both parties to end the strike continue to end unproductively, as both parties fail to find middle ground.
- The extension of 12 weeks follows a one-month warning strike and a two-month extension.
What does this means
Excluding 2022, within the last five years (2017-2021), Nigerian students have spent 395 days out of 1825 days on strike; this is more than a calendar year.
- Continued strike is taking a toll on the quality of education received by Nigerian students and also extending the years an average student spends in school.
What they are saying
ASUU president, Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke, in a statement said that the extension by 12 weeks is to give the federal government time to respond to the lecturers’ demands.