Clement Adeyi, Osogbo
The Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Osun State chapter of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) as well as the Non-Academic Staff Union of Universities (NASU) participated in the nationwide warning strike embarked upon by the association on Monday.
The OAU SSANU chairman, Ademola Oketunde, said the union bodies had no option than to comply with the directive of the Joint Action Congress (JAC) Chairman, Mr Samson Ugwoke, to participate in the industrial action.
Oketunde stressed that the strike was intended to register their grievances with the Federal government, following its failure to meet their demands and the need to do the needful.
He disclosed that the demands included adjustment of 20 percent ratio on payment of earned allowances, resolution of issues bordering on university staff schools as well as the resolution of the renegotiation of the 2009 Federal government and unions agreement.
“This is the third week since we held a meeting with the Federal government on the injustice being meted out on SSANU and NASU over the sharing of 20 percent ratio of earned allowances not acceptable to us. We protested and the Federal government invited us to the meeting and agreed to do the needful,” he said.
“But we are so surprised that selective implementation was done by the Federal government, whereby only OAU and UI were exempted from university staff schools Federal government salary scheme which case was won on December 15, 2016.
“Also, the failure of the Federal Ministry of Education to sign the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) is highly mischievous,” he stressed.
Oketunde added that the unions would review the strike on Thursday and would wait for the directive from above on Friday.
He insisted that if the Federal government failed to meet the demands, the unions would soon proceed on an indefinite strike in all Nigerian universities.