ASUU strike: FG makes U-turn

  Nasir Fagge and Goodluck Jonathan

The Presidency said on Monday it was no longer interested in the December 9  deadline  it handed over to the striking university  teachers  to return to work.

Rather, it said it was satisfied with the lecturers’  level of compliance with  the  directive to them  to resume work or be sacked.

The Senior Special Assistant to President Goodluck Jonathan on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe, said this while briefing journalists on the payment of the N200bn by the Federal Government into the “Revitalisation of Universities Infrastructure” account with the Central Bank of Nigeria.

Okupe’s claim of “substantial compliance” was however described as  total falsehood by the Academic Staff Union of Universities leadership, which also said it would not attend a meeting on Wednesday(today)  with the Supervising Minister of Education, Mr. Nyesom Wike, and vice-chancellors on  the University Needs Assessment Report Implementation Committee.

Okupe had  told journalists   that  the Federal Government  was soft pedalling on the threat to sack the defiant ASUU members  because  many senior citizens and institutions had intervened.

He said that as of Sunday evening, government had reports that   there was substantial compliance by many lecturers   with the directive.

The Presidential aide  added that   the development  encouraged  the  government   to mellow down on its earlier tough stance.

He cited the University of Lagos as  an   example  of  a public university  where   in  the   Faculties of Law, Arts and Science,  out of 100  lecturers,  “ between  60 and 70 signed up to resume work.”

The trend, according to him,  was replicated   in “virtually all the universities in the country, including the Obafemi Awolowo  University and University of  Ibadan.”

Okupe  said, “The ultimatum is not a matter for discussion anymore. I told you, there has been substantial compliance nationwide. If I say you must return to work on the 9th and 70 per cent of the people that I am talking to have returned to work, that is substantial compliance.

“What becomes of the remaining 30 per cent  who did not return to work, these are issues that we do not want to stop the wheel of progress in sorting out this resolution. We are not interested in a witch-hunt;  we are more interested in compliance and in the resolution of the crisis.

“Many senior Nigerians, institutions and organisations, including labour unions such as the Nigerian Labour Congress  and the Trade Union Congress,  as well as  royal fathers have intervened and have pleaded with  the government to soft pedal on the issue of  ultimatum.”

Asked if  the government was serious about the ultimatum in the first place, he  replied  “Yes.”

Okupe   explained  that the  government was    forced to issue  the ultimatum because every other avenue to end the strike had been explored to no avail.

 He said, “I said it before that governments worldwide, when pushed to the wall take  steps that may be draconian but sometimes, they have to be taken in order to protect the citizens and the states they govern.”

The Presidential aide  accused the media of presenting  the  strike  as if the Federal Government and ASUU were in a face-off.

He said, “There is no face-off between the  government and ASUU.

“ASUU may be grandstanding but the  government is more interested in the resolution than in any form of confrontation with any union whatsoever.

“Our interest is to ensure good governance, orderliness and peaceful coexistence nationwide and among all sectors of the economy and that education is not left behind.”

While giving further evidence that   the N200bn had been paid, Okupe released  a copy of the letter written by the Deputy Governor of CBN, Mr. Tunde Lemo,  to the Accountant General of the Federation, to journalists.

The letter, with reference GVD/DGO/GEN/MPA/05/151 and dated December 10, 2013, reads in part, “Confirmation of the execution of your mandates for the credit of account No: 00200xx522, Revitalisation of Universities Infrastructure Account.

“I write to confirm the execution of the following mandates by the CBN for funding of the above mentioned account as follows:

1. Mandate FDL/LP201340/1/30/DF: N129,300,000,000:00

2. Mandate FD/FA/124/Vol X11/120/1DF: N20,700,000,000:00

3. Mandate FD/LP2013/40/1/DF :N50,000,000,000:00

“I wish to further confirm  that the available balance in the aforementioned account is N200bn  (two hundred billion naira) only.

 “Please accept the assurances of my best regards.”

With this, Okupe said there was  no  need  for  the continuation of the strike.

He said the President of ASUU, Dr. Nasir Fagge, had  assured  last Thursday that if there was proof of payment of the sum, the strike would be called off immediately.

Okupe said, “I hereby show the proof of payment to all Nigerians, not only to ASUU and to let the people know that when we say that this administration has no credibility issue, we mean it.

“We have kept our cool; we have taken a lot of insults and all that and things that were disparaging but we are glad to show this proof that this has been done as we said.”