The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) is poised to go on an indefinite industrial action as the second round of the eight-week warning strike ends on Monday, May 9, 2022.
The Union, through it verified Twitter handle on Sunday, said: “The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) will end its warning strike tomorrow (Monday), 9th of May 2022, as considerations on indefinite strike commence. More details to follow.”
However, LEADERSHIP gathered that the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the union had earlier given the go-ahead to the national leadership to call out members on indefinite strike if nothing tangible was achieved during the eight-week of the warning strike.
The union had earlier gone on a month warning strike on February 14 this year, and extended it by another eight weeks which comes to an end on Monday, May 9, 2022.
While ASUU was into the second round of its warning strike, other staff unions in the university system also embarked on strike.
The unions were the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, (SSANU), the National Association of Academic Technologists (NAAT), and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Education and Allied Institutions (NASU).
While the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige, had met with the leadership of SSANU, NAAT, and NASU, nothing concrete came out of the meetings. He announced last weekend that he would be meeting with ASUU too.
However, the National President of ASUU, Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke, who spoke with journalists over the weekend, said the union had not received any invitation from the government’s team as of the weekend.
“We too heard it in the news what the Minister of Labour said about meeting with us, but as we talk, nobody has reached out to us for any meeting. We don’t know when the meeting will be called.
“However, I think before going to the press to announce any proposed meeting, what ought to have been done is to inform us. Anyway, we are waiting for the meeting when it is called,” he said.
Speaking on the situation, the National President of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Comrade Sunday Asefon, said the association would study the situation and react appropriately.
“We already have a plan of action in place regarding our demands for the reopening of the universities without further delay and we are keeping faith with that. However, if the strike is extended after the eight weeks of warning action, we will also react appropriately too.
“Nigeria students have wasted more than enough time at home doing nothing. With this current situation now, students have wasted time that is enough for them to finish a semester. We are tired of things like this,” he stated.
