Another round of crisis that may lead to another strike is looming in the public universities over the alleged inability of the Federal Government to conclude re-negotiations with the university-based unions on the 2009 Agreement.
The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, SSANU has lamented that it has lost so many of its members as a result of the failure of the government to pay the four months withheld salaries during the strike period.
The four university-based unions, SSANU, the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, the Non-Academic Staff of Allied and Educational Institutions, NASU and the National Association of Academic Technologists, NAAT had last year shut down public universities over the inability of the government to attend to their demands.
ASUU withdrew its services on February 14, 2022 and was followed by NAAT after many weeks and then SSANU and NASU.
While SSANU and NASU called off their strike in August last year after they reached an agreement with the Federal Government, ASUU remained adamant until the intervention of the National Industrial Court which ordered the striking lecturers to go back to their duty posts in October.
In a communique, SSANU had said it is deeply peeved by the nonchalant and detached attitude of the Federal Government towards the long-standing issue of renegotiating the 2009 Agreement.
SSANU President, Comrade Ibrahim said it was unfair for the government not to pay members their salary.
He contended that withholding their salary multiplies the problems in the society and compounds the stress his members are facing on issues of house rents, payments of loans, and undertaking societal obligations among others. VANGUARD
Procyon News