FG wants peaceful resolution with ASUU, strike unfortunate, minister says

THE Federal Government on Wednesday said it wanted a peaceful resolution with members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) although the union chose to embark on another round of strike despite the ongoing negotiations. 

Disclosing this after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu, said it was surprising that ASUU would declare a one-month warning strike at a time the Federal Government is attending to their demands. 

He denied shunning meetings with the union, adding that he had all along been the one summoning the union leadership to meetings except for the period when he was hospitalised in Germany. 

The university teachers embarked on strike last Monday to press home their demands, which they claimed the Federal Government had been reluctant to meet. 

Fielding questions, the minister said: “ASUU, unfortunately, has gone on strike and I am looking for them, because all the issues are being addressed. 

“The last thing that happened was that our committee looked at their demands but there are re-negotiations going on. They submitted a draft agreement which the ministry is looking at.” 

On the draft agreement with ASUU, he said: “a committee is looking at it. Immediately it finishes, the government is meant to announce what it had accepted. 

“We want a peaceful resolution. The Federal Government is ready to meet the union on all issues raised and if there are so many meetings and the gap is not closing, then I think it’s not the fault of the government.” 

He expressed optimism that the government would reach an agreement with the union soon. Speaking on the meeting, he said the FEC approved for his ministry the two memos he presented for the printing contract by the National Examination Council (NECO) for the Senior School Certificate Examination awarded to nine contractors. 

He added that the contract is for the printing of sensitive, non-sensitive material and supply of other ancillary equipment for the examination. 

The minister also defended the discriminatory cut-off marks for southern and northern prospective Common Entrance admission candidates for unity schools, saying that it is in line with the Federal Character principle. 

He said the policy will remain until such a time it is no longer necessary. 

Also speaking, Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Ali Isa Pantami, briefing correspondents on the FEC’s approval for his ministry, declined to comment on the claim by ASUU that the professorial rank awarded to him by the Federal University of Technology, Owerri (FUTO) is illegal. 

He, however, disclosed that FEC approved the National Policy on the Government Second Level Domain, which he explained mandates federal public institutions, ministries, departments, agencies, and all government institutions to migrate from using generic domain in their websites and their emails to the government second level domain, under government top-level domain. 

At the meeting on Wednesday, FEC presided over by Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo approved contract awards to the tune of N1,171,354 223,133 for the ministries of transportation and that of education. 

Transportation had the sum of $2,810 674,064.92 (about N1,166,388,236 570) approved for it for the procurement and maintenance of railway rolling stocks, while the education ministry got approval for printing jobs for NECO, worth N4,965,986,573.89. 

Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, told correspondents after the meeting that the contract, coming with 7.5 per cent tax, was approved to procure rolling stocks for the operation and operational maintenance equipment for the new railway projects corridors in Ibadan to Kano standard gauge and Port Harcourt to Maiduguri narrow gauge rail lines.