ASUU Strikes Where Lies The Blame?
From TOCHUKWU EZEH, Abuja.

THE Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) after exploring and exploiting all avenues to find lasting solution to the face off between the union body and the federal government on the proposed agreement on adequate budgetary provision for education, improved condition of service that would check the problems of brain drain, university autonomy on Tuesday, 22nd June, 2009 embarked on an indefinite strike.
According to a statement posted on the site of the union body, for over two years, the Federal Government and ASUU Negotiating Teams for a minimum point from which the Nigerian University system could make significant progress towards reversing the brain drain that has deprived the nation of a vital factor for national development, i.e. the development and sustenance of a large pool of scholars whose intellectual  scientific production would reposition Nigeria for greater national development.
The two teams which agreed that in order to begin the process of repositioning the university system as envisaged required minimum of funds that should be provided both in the public universities, with increased efforts by universities to generate funds without compromising the goals and integrity of universities with emphasis on budgetary and non-budgetary provisions.
The negotiation teams agreed that if Nigeria is to get where it ought to be, a minimum of 26% of the annual budget of the state and federal governments ought to be allocated to education.
It would be recalled that since December 2008, when the negotiation between FGN-ASUU negotiating teams was completed, ASUU, despite having persuaded its members to exercise patience for over two years, once again resolved to do its best to avoid a crisis. In March, 2009, ASUU was first told that the agreement would be signed before the end of April and at the end of April, they were told it would be signed on May 7, which never took place because the Permanent Secretary was not in the country.
Again, on May 10th, ASUU was invited to come for the signing of the agreement on Tuesday May 12, 2009 at the National Universities Commission (NUC) which turned out to be a classic case of deception as the federal government's team intimated them that it had no authority from its principal to sign the agreement.
Since the executive body of the union has come to understand that the meetings being scheduled by federal government are gimmicks to ensure ASUU didn't succeed, the union  has no alternative than to embark on the warning strike of May 18-31, 2009.
From the foregoing, the statement highlighted that the grouse of the union included; non-challancy of government towards their plight, insincerity and deceit as it concisely disclosed that "we have embarked upon this strike because the situation had remained unchanged since the end of the two-week warning strike on May 31, 2009. We keep hearing actions that are entirely foreign to the collective bargaining process: government setting up a technical committee on an agreement without reference to the negotiating team, a ministerial committee set up with terms of reference that would entirely nullify the essence of the negotiated agreement. There was the false propaganda in the newspapers declaring N78 billion as the requirement of ASUU's  agreement.
"Our members have come to the conclusion that over two and a half years of patience is enough. They feel betrayed, duped and do not want to suffer any more psychological or moral trauma. NEC considered carefully the views of the branches and resolved that ASUU's major concern in engaging in such a long, painstaking negotiation  the revitalization of the university system, will not be compromised.
"In view of government's failure to sign the agreement reached by the negotiating teams, NEC, after a thorough review of the total situation, resolved that all ASUU branches shall embark upon a total and indefinite strike until government signs the agreement with ASUU. For the avoidance of doubt, it is the government that has forced us to embark upon this strike. We have done all our best to avoid it. And it can be as short as possible if the government respects and signs the agreement reached with ASUU by government's own negotiating team.
"We appeal to the public, parents, our students, patriotic groups and individuals to appeal to government to sign and implement the agreement reached by the negotiating teams. The ultimate consequences of not doing so should be blamed on government and not ASUU. Indeed, this action was clearly avoidable. Government need not also prolong it, in the interest of students, their parents and our country. Should government prolong it, government should also bear the responsibility", the statement concluded.
While Nigerians were optimistic of speedy resolution considering the fact that  in the present administration the President, Vice President, Minister of Education and Minister of State for Education are teachers (lecturers and teachers), the matter looked far from being given urgent attention with the briefing by the education minister, Sam Egwu on the said agreement which is the bone of contention.
Egwu while briefing newsmen on Wednesday,  June 24, 2009 after meeting with the union executives disclosed that government did not enter into any agreement with ASUU, rather earlier negotiations existing between both parties only resulted in a draft document worked out by committees set up to look into grieving issues.
According to him, "let us clear this impression. Government did not enter into any agreement with ASUU. Let that be made clear, government nominated people to be part of the negotiations and it was agreed even from that document that at the end of the negotiations, the document would be sent to their principals and the principal on the part of the government is Mr. President.
"It wasn't as if the government had agreed on anything. That document was not an agreement. It was a document suggesting issues on things that needed to be done. It only becomes an agreement when both parties agreed but this issue never got to Mr. President."
Though the minister disclosed that while government said it would take additional N78 billion to guarantee the pay rise, ASUU is demanding for 109 percent increase in current pay package for its members, nevertheless, he maintained that government is doing everything possible to ensure better working conditions in the universities but lamented that it is handicapped by cash flow problems.
"The cause of the matter is salary increment. ASUU is requesting for 109 percent salary increment across board. This would translate to huge amount of money. Salaries alone for the academic community requires an additional N78 billion and government is constrained due to the present economic reality and the global financial crisis. That is why we set up the negotiating team to look at all these issues".
The minister, who expressed disappointment that the union had embarked on strike while the negotiation is still on, said that they should have waited for the completion of talks before taking final decision on the matter. He, however, pleaded with the aggrieved lecturers to see government as a partner in progress and call off the strike in the interest of the nation.  
The minister, however, said the inter ministerial committee set up by the federal government is on board to look into grey areas necessitating the crisis in the university sector, adding that the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Yayale Ahmed, who chairs the inter ministerial committee would soon submit its findings.
  Following the declaration, the Senate, the elites and even the students have been calling for peaceful resolution of the matter as trading words would not help matters rather it will aggravate the issue and rot more the already decaying education sector.
The Senate through its Chairman on Media and Information, Sen. Ayogu Eze, while sympathising with the aggrieved ASUU members stated that having observed that the nation cannot toy with the education sector urged "the lecturers to exercise some restraint once more while we talk to the executive to find a way to meet their aspiration based on the resources available to it."
A former student union leader, Ahmed Agbabiaka, who pleaded with the federal government to implement its agreement with the lecturers, for the sake of the future of the Nigerian students noted that "this does not speak well of a country that wishes to achieve the Vision 20:20:20."
The ASUU's  Chairman of the University of Lagos chapter, Ayo Olowe according to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) while condemning the manner the government is approaching a serious issue like this stated that "with the way government is going, I don't think we will be able to do much to improve on the kind of graduates we produce in the country."
Dispassionately,  the question that needs urgent answer and which should be taken into cognisance is, "strike action, does it serve as answer to our already decayed education system or does it contribute to the destruction of the system?
We should remember that we all owe this great nation an allegiance to serve with all our strength and "what legacy would we be living behind if at the end of the day, we end up destroying the system which is the bedrock to the nation's development?"
All parties, both the government and ASUU while considering lasting solution to the issues at stake should also bear in mind that "whatever resolution to be reached, quality and standard of education should not be compromised" as the nation would not forgive whoever it was that contributed to destroying the already messed up education sector rather, history would always remember he/she that contributed to the restoration of our already battered education sector.