Jonathan Tasks FG’s Negotiation Teams On Quick End To ASUU Strike

President Goodluck Jonathan has directed the federal government negotiating teams to take all the necessary steps to ensure the quick resolution of the industrial dispute declared by university lecturers. The president gave the directive Tuesday, when members of the two committees set
up by the federal government to negotiate with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) briefed him on the progress so far made in ending the lingering strike by the union. The meeting with the president came against the backdrop of the deadlock on Monday in negotiations between the federal government teams and ASUU over the implementation of the 2009 agreement signed between the government and the union. Chairman of the Universities Needs Implementation Committee, Mr. Gabriel Suswam, who is also Benue State governor, told State House reporters after a closed-door meeting of the two committees and other stakeholders with Jonathan at the State House, Abuja that the president instructed them on what to do to end the strike. According to a report by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Suswam said the meeting was summoned by the president “to take some decisions that would end the strike.” “The president has instructed us as to what to do and he has shown a lot of commitments to flagging off projects worth about N100 billion in all the universities in the country, about 61 of them. “So, we are hoping that we will be able to see the end of the strike very soon,” Suswam said. “At the end of the day, we hope ASUU is satisfied with the measures that have so far been taken. “The federal government will also be meeting with the universities councils and vice-chancellors of our universities within the week towards updating them on some of the decisions taken,” he added. Expressing government’s commitment to ending the strike, Suswam said the federal government had approved about N100 billion for his committee to address infrastructure deficit in all the universities. “The president has graciously agreed that in the first week of September, he will be able to launch the projects.