"ASUU Ready To Call Off Strike" – Falana Assures

Respected human rights lawyer, Femi Falana has said the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) is ready to call off its lingering strike.

This was contained in a statement by the Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) released on Thursday, July 14, 2022.

Falana has now called on the Federal Government to meet the demands of the lecturers and end the strike which started on February 14.

This comes less than 72 hours after Falana called on the Federal Government to submit a supplementary budget to appropriate N200bn to revamp federal universities across Nigeria.

Falana stated: “Based on our consultation with the leadership of ASUU, we have confirmed that the entire members of ASUU are prepared to call off the strike as soon as the FG/ASUU Renegotiated Agreement is executed by the Federal Government.

“In this circumstance, we are compelled to call on President Buhari to end the industrial action by directing the Minister of Education, Mr. Adamu Adamu to execute the Renegotiated Agreement. The Agreement should be executed as soon as possible in the public interest."

ASUU embarked on a four-week warning strike on February 14.

On March 14, the union extended the industrial action by another two months to allow the government meets all of its demands. A 12-week extension was announced on May 9.

Since May 9, the union has remained on strike, vowing to persist until its demands are met.

The academics are seeking improved welfare, revitalization of public universities, and academic autonomy among other demands.

One bone of contention for academics is the non-payment of university revitalization funds, which amounts to about N1.1 trillion.

But the Federal Government has said it doesn’t have the money to pay such an amount, citing low oil prices during the Muhammadu Buhari administration.

The agreement was reportedly struck in 2009.