Education

ASUU strike: ‘Additional N560bn needed to pay varsity teachers’

Published

2 years ago

July 22, 2022

Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu

Additional N560 billion may be needed by the Federal Government to meet university teachers’ demand for increased annual pay, a top government source has said.

The source, as reported by The Nation, is privy to the renewed negotiations between the government and university-based unions.

The government is said to spend N372 billion annually on university education alone, including lecturers’ salaries.

Based on talks with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), a professor could earn, at least, N2 million monthly.

The Nation reported on Wednesday that the government offered about N1 million monthly salary for a professor, which is a 100 per cent rise.

President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday moved to break the ice by personally meeting with the leadership of ASUU, the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian University (SSANU), the National Association of Applied Academic Technologists, NAAT and the National Association of Non-Academics of Educational Institutions Staff Union (NASU)

At the end of the meeting, which was attended by representatives of relevant government ministries and agencies, Buhari directed Education Minister Adamu Adamu to end the strike within two weeks.

The government had at the parley cited dwindling oil revenue as a major hindrance to its inability to meet demands by ASUU, SSANU, NAAT and NASU.

Investigation by The Nation revealed yesterday that based on Buhari’s directive of Buhari, Finance and National Planning Minister Zainab Ahmed, Adamu, the Budget Office and National Wages and Salaries Commission and other agencies have been working on the modalities to meet the unions’ demands without much shock on the economy.

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A source said while the government acceded to agitations for a pay rise and release of revitalisation funds to universities, it was also weighing other options.

One of the options, according to him, is to lay the cards on the table for the unions to appreciate and bear with the government.

The source said: “Presently, the government is spending N372 billion annually on university education alone, including lecturers’ salaries. The government also spends billions on polytechnics and colleges of education.

“If ASUU insists on N2 million per month for a professor, the Federal Government will have to cough out an additional N560 billion to be able to meet the expectations of ASUU.

“There is no way the economy can accommodate such an increase. The government and the lecturers have to sit down to face the reality and design a middle course approach to end the strike.”

On revitalisation funds, a source said the Buhari administration has been paying them “in a gradual manner.”

His words: “The agreement ASUU reached with the government of ex-President Goodluck Jonathan was in respect of N1.3trillion Revitalisation Funds. But in line with the economic situation, the Buhari administration reached understanding to release the first tranche of N220 billion. We have paid up to 70 per cent since 2016.

“From March to August last year, we paid about N92.7billion to varsities apart from a consequential adjustment of minimum wage in universities which resulted in 10 per cent pay rise from 2019.

“The differential from the adjustment was paid to university teachers in May this year despite the fact that they are on strike. The universities got an additional N27 billion.

“The polytechnics and Colleges of Education got N4.5 billion and N5.5billion respectively. The Buhari administration has done a lot for the university system but ASUU does not reckon with the best offered its members.

The source also dismissed the comparison of Nigeria’s university pay structure with Rwanda, Ghana, South Africa and Uganda.

He said: “Even at the renegotiation table on Federal /ASUU 2009 Agreement, the National Universities Commission’s recommendation was rejected.

“How many universities are in these African countries? What is the population of their lecturers? We have a peculiar situation with peculiar problems.

“The renegotiation talks were stalled because ASUU does not want to be guided by the technical advisers from the Federal Ministry of Finance and National Planning and Budget Office.

“They drove away experienced directors from the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation and the National Salaries and Wages Commission.

“Instead, they are hanging on to the report of Prof. Nimi Briggs Renegotiation Committee on the 2009 Agreement. The committee even offered professors additional steps from Step 10 to 13.”

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Education

Poly graduates protest proposed exclusion from NYSC

Published

11 hours ago

January 7, 2025

Trends Admin

Poly graduates protest proposed exclusion from NYSC

HND graduates with part-time National Diploma backgrounds staged a protest on Monday at the Lagos NYSC secretariat, decrying a proposed policy barring them from the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) scheme.

The demonstrators, holding placards with messages such as “Say No to Discrimination in NYSC” and “Equal Rights for All,” called for an immediate reversal of the policy as Batch C Stream II registration commenced.

Majaro Temitope, an HND graduate from Yaba College of Technology, described the policy as discriminatory, noting it unfairly penalises those who switched from part-time National Diploma (ND) programmes to full-time HND studies.

“Many of us struggled through our ND on part-time, only to face exclusion now. We hope our peaceful protest sparks a dialogue,” Temitope said. He urged the NYSC Director-General and the Minister of Education to intervene.

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The protesters claimed to have written to relevant authorities, including the NYSC and JAMB, without receiving a response.

Adebola Osunfunrewa, from the Education Rights Campaign, criticised the proposed exclusion, calling it a setback for Nigeria’s educational system.

“How can over 3,000 graduates eager to serve be denied in a country facing teacher shortages?” he queried.

Responding to the protest, the Lagos NYSC Coordinator, Christiana Salwang, represented by Assistant Director Ehimuenma Itohan, assured the graduates their concerns had been forwarded to the NYSC Director-General.

“The director general is reviewing the matter and is committed to addressing your grievances within policy guidelines,” Itohan stated, urging protesters to remain calm.

The outcome of the deliberations remains awaited as the mobilisation process continues.

Poly graduates protest proposed exclusion from NYSC

Education

Bode George rejects Old Students move to take over King’s College

Published

11 hours ago

January 7, 2025

Trends Admin

King’s College

Bode George rejects Old Students move to take over King’s College

FORMER Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Bode George, yesterday, faulted the decision of some alumni of King’s College in Lagos State to take over the school’s administration.

Last week, some notable elders from Lagos State visited President Bola Tinubu to discuss their intention to take over the school.

Bode George, however, countered the move, saying the elders failed to use the opportunity to draw the President’s attention to the plights of Nigerians.

According to him, the elders also failed to draw the President’s attention to the worsening socio-economic conditions in Lagos State.

His words: “The visiting elders from Lagos also missed the golden opportunity to demonstrate to the president the urgent need for the rehabilitation of the teeming youth population in the state, who are unemployed and economically stranded in their hundreds of thousands. They should have advocated for programmes aimed at lifting these individuals out of poverty through skills acquisition, to curtail the nefarious activities associated with social vices that have become prevalent across the state.

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“Additionally, issues concerning the rehabilitation of roads in the outskirts of Lagos, such as the Lagos-Abeokuta Express Road and Mile 2-Badagry Road, should have been a matter of urgent concern for the elders. To say the truth, the general state of infrastructure in Lagos is appalling, with an attendant lack of social amenities like public toilets.

“Instead of discussing these urgent state and national issues, I was told some of these elders, who are old students of the prestigious King’s College in Lagos, told the President they wanted to take over the school. They even made the President an Honorary member of their Old Students’ Association, somebody who did not attend the school.

“Nigerians know the story and history behind King’s College, a Federal Government school.” How do these elders even think the government will hand over the school to them to run as a private enterprise? How do they intend to run the school?

What is the blueprint? What are their education plans? Will old students of Queen’s College also ask for a similar favour from the president? What of old students of AIONIAN Schools? Will they make the same request? Is this distraction what we need now?

“What I believe they should do is to ask the Federal Ministry of Education and the management of the school where they can intervene to continue to project the image of the school and help the students.

Education

UNILORIN introduces courier service for collection of certificates

Published

1 day ago

January 6, 2025

Trends Admin

UNILORIN

UNILORIN introduces courier service for collection of certificates

The University of Ilorin, UNILORIN, in Kwara, says it has introduced a system where unclaimed certificates could be collected through courier service.

Mansur Alfanla, the Registrar of the university, who spoke with newsmen on Monday in Ilorin, described the move as upgrading to international best practices.

According to him, this move will allow prospective collectors to receive their certificates through courier delivery.

“This is a departure from the university’s previous policy of not allowing third-party collection.

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“To collect their certificates, interested individuals are required to submit the original statement of result, court affidavit, indemnity form and valid international passport (for applicants in the diaspora).

“For those who prefer physical collection, it has been arranged for collection to take place at the university from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m, every Monday to Friday.

“This development is expected to bring convenience to graduates and alumni of the university, especially those residing outside the country,” he said.

The registrar, in a memo dated December 18, advised all graduates of the university to collect their certificates before January 17, 2025.

The memo stated that graduates who failed to collect their certificates before the deadline, would pay a fine of ₦3,000 per week before collection of the certificate.