There have been indications that after today’s meeting between President Goodluck Jonathan and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), the four month strike of the lecturers may finally end.
A closed-door meeting has started on Monday at 2:40 pm inside the First Lady Conference Room, Presidential Villa, Abuja.
It has in attendance the President, Vice President, Namadi Sambo; Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala; Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Pius Anyim; Supervising Minister of Education, Nyesom Wike; and Minister of Labour, Emeka Wogu among others.
The ASUU is presented by its Chairman, Dr. Nasir Isa Fagge, Prof. Abdulahi Sule-Kano, Prof. Dipo Fashina and Prof. Festus Iyayi, Prof. Suleiman Abdul, and Prof. Abdullahi Sule-Kano.
President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Abdulawahid Omar and that of the Trade Union Congress, Bobboi Kaigama, are also there.
Indication that the strike that is now into its 5th month may be resolved has emerged when the President stated, while shaking hands with Fagge:
“My president, I hope it will end today. Our children have suffered enough. We must find a solution.”
All those in attendance responded with a loud “amen.”
This is the first meeting between the lecturers and Jonathan since the beginning of the strike.
It will be recalled, that ASUU has embarked upon an indefinite strike July 1, 2013. The lecturers protest against an alleged FG’s failure to honor an agreement signed between the govenment and ASUU in 2009 pertaining to issues of university funding and improvement of infrastructure in the sector. So far all the attempts to come to an agreement between the FG and ASUU have been fruitless.
