Contrary to the general belief that strikes and incessant disruption of academic calendar have been responsible for declining educational standards in the country, the Non-Academic Staff Union of Universities (NASU) has said, strikes are rather saving the educational sector from total collapse.
The General Secretary of NASU, Comrade Peters Adeyemi said strike was the only industrial tool that has been useful in getting the government to partly live up to its responsibility.
He said benefits currently being enjoyed in the tertiary education sector have been as a result of the strikes that were considered to have plagued the sector.
He cited as example, the N130 billion the Federal government released recently for infrastructure and allowances through the Chairman of the Needs Assessment Implementation Committee, Benue State Governor Gabriel Suswam.
“The government had already pledged to release N400 billion for infrastructure since 2013; N100 billion for four years. But if not for the ongoing strike, they would not have released the first N100 billion. Why does the government have to wait for strikes to even start implementing any part of an agreement?” Adeyemi asked.
He added that although NASU was not on strike, but that the salaries of its members have not been paid for several months and that that was the reason some local chapters embarked on strike.
He noted that the union was currently restraining itself, but could not understand why its members’ salaries were being withheld.
Justifying the ongoing ASUU strike, he blamed the government for the spate of strikes in the tertiary education sector, adding that sometimes the stance of government negotiators left much to be desired.
“Government negotiators have to know their onions; they must know the capacity and limitation of government. But if, on behalf of government, they entered into an agreement to provide N1.3 trillion, then the government is bound by that agreement,” he said.
Adeyemi said, “N130 billion is a lot of money, but is that what they said they will provide in the agreement? When you know you are not in position to do something, you should not promise to. You cannot have an agreement, then after three years come back and say you want to renegotiate that agreement.”
NASU/FGN 2009 agreement was also due for renegotiation, he said, but noted that the agreement has not been fully implemented.
On why NASU decided to return to the Nigeria Labour Congress fold after it pulled out in protest during the 2011 National Delegates Conference, Adeyemi explained that the decision was taken because of the need to reinvigorate the labour movement in Nigeria.
“The labour movement is one where you have to fight for your rights to get it, so you need harmony. We can work together to enhance policies and strategies of engagement for more effectiveness and repositioning of the movement,” Adeyemi explained.
He added that the return of NASU into NLC was without conditions.
