By Eteteonline Team
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has emphasized his administration’s commitment to keeping Nigerian children in school by ordering Education Minister Dr. Tunji Alausa to take quick and all necessary steps to put an end to the Academic Staff Union of Universities’ (ASUU) continuing strike.
The order came after the President and Dr. Alausa met at the State House in Abuja. The Minister told the public that the government is stepping up talks to address any outstanding issues and has generally complied with ASUU’s demands.
The education minister stated that the president has instructed the ministry to do all within their power to keep pupils in school and that he does not want ASUU to go on strike.
He reiterated that the government is still willing to engage and called the previous six-day strike needless, adding that negotiations had resumed with the union leadership in the wake of the concessions.
In order to dispel rumors of government indifference and a supposed four-week ultimatum, Dr. Alausa clarified that the Federal Government has redesigned its tertiary institution negotiation framework.
The minister declared a significant change in the approach to negotiations. In the past, discussions with ASUU for universities, ASUP for polytechnics, and COHESU for institutions of education were conducted by different government committees. The Yayale Ahmed Federal Government negotiating committee for tertiary institutions is the sole negotiating body that has unified this strategy.
One committee has been expanded by the government. According to the minister, communication with academic and non-academic unions at all federal tertiary institutions is now managed by this single committee.
He claimed that the purpose of his visit to the President was to inform him of the existing state of affairs and to request additional concessions meant to guarantee long-term stability in the education sector. The Minister emphasized that the administration’s emphasis on human capital development spans education, healthcare, and social protection, and he praised the President’s passionate and altruistic love for education and human capital.
ASUU recently cited insufficient funding, delayed promotions, and salary arrears as the main causes of its industrial action. According to the administration, these problems have been mostly resolved, and talks are still ongoing to guarantee complete compliance and long-term harmony in the higher education system.
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