Asuu Threatens Fresh Strike Over Unpaid Salary

Asuu Threatens Fresh Strike Over Unpaid Salary

How credible is the looming strike proposed by ASUU?

The Academic Staff Union of Nigeria University has threatened to revolt to their previous course of action, the obstinacy they express last year in flinging the gates of varsities open, is looming once more to surface as a course of action to the refusal of the Accountant general of the federation to pay the salaries and remit the check-off dues of over 1000 staff for 13 months.

A clue of Asuu’s next line of action was unveiled by Dr, Lazarus Maigoro, the chairman of the varsity of Jos branch of Asuu. He made such disclosure of this hint in a statement he released.

While accusing the Accountant general he noted that the AGF was responsible for inciting discord between the federal government and the staff body, which of course is one of the symptoms of a strike.

After a correspondent from the Nations authenticated a telephone interview with Miagoro, it was released that ASUU president, Prof Emmanuel Osodeke said:

“As we speak, they are still owing many of our members in many of the branches between 2-16 months salaries without pay by the accountant-General office.

He further noted that a cunning strategy had been employed to swindle staffs into IPPIS, he said;

“As we speak They are using that to blackmail our members to enroll into IPPIS. There are lectures that they will pay this month after one or two months they will stop and all sort of funny things.

“We have met with the minister of labor and employment. Ee even cascaded it to the level of the office of the chief of staff to the president, but they (OAGF’s office) seem to be adamant about punishing our members.

“On the issue of the next lone of action, our union has a procedure. When it is time, we know what to do. There is a procedure for embarking on a strike and the union will follow that procedure.”

The prolonged strike that was recently called to a halt seeing to it that members of ASUU resumed work was caused by a riff with the federal government.

The strike which took flight in the month of March last year was instituted after the union’s rejection of what is known as the use of coercion on its members to enroll on integrated payroll and personal information system (IPPIS).

With the shock that rippled the nation, labor minister Chris Ngige wasn’t left out of the party as he expressed awe over the fresh threat issued by ASUU.

He said he would find out the true position of things to bring a resolution to the rising matter.