The Senate has intervened in the ongoing two-week warning strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), moving to prevent a full-scale shutdown of academic activities across Nigeria’s public universities.
Members of the Senate Committees on Labour, and on Tertiary Institutions and TETFUND, met behind closed doors with ASUU’s national leadership at the National Assembly on Friday. A follow-up meeting with key government officials, including the Minister of Education and the Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC), is scheduled for next week.
Chairman of the Committee on Tertiary Institutions and TETFUND, Senator Muntari Dandutse, told journalists that the lawmakers were determined to ensure a quick resolution to the dispute. He said the Senate would also meet the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, over allegations of land encroachment at the University of Abuja.
ASUU President, Professor Christopher Piwuna, said the strike followed the Federal Government’s failure to honour past agreements and adequately fund public universities. He accused the Ministry of Education of withholding part of the N150 billion approved for university revitalisation, warning that the union might declare an indefinite strike if its grievances were not addressed. Senator Dandutse said the Senate viewed education as central to national development and would work with the executive to ensure lecturers return to the classrooms and a lasting peace is restored in the university system.
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