The Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman, convened a meeting with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to address ongoing issues within universities and prevent a looming strike.

ASUU President, Osodeke, expressed dissatisfaction with the government’s failure to implement previously reached agreements.

“At the meeting called by the Minister of Education, we agreed that after two weeks, we will meet to see the progress the government has made,” Osodeke stated. “We will also see what we will do next if the government fails to implement the agreements reached. The meeting in the next two weeks is to see what they have done which will inform our decision.”

Key among ASUU’s demands is the implementation of the 2009 re-negotiated agreements, which have been pending for over six years. The accumulated academic allowances for members have also gone unaddressed during this period.

Regarding revitalization funds, Osodeke highlighted the NEEDs Assessment Report’s recommendation for an annual allocation of N200 billion over five years. “Since 2013, only one payment has been made. We need revitalization funds to upgrade our universities to standard, so that we can have students and lecturers from outside the country,” he emphasized.

Osodeke also criticized the government’s approval of new universities without providing adequate funding and called for the cessation of university salary payments through the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS).

Despite a Federal Executive Council directive in January to exit IPPIS, members are still being paid through this system, contrary to the directive.