BBC Pidgin of Friday, 14 October 2022

Source: BBC

Asuu strike Nigeria update 2022: University lecturers don suspend 8-month-old strike

Dr Chris Piwuna Dr Chris Piwuna

Public Lecturers for Nigeria don suspend dia eight month old strike. Dr Chris Piwuna, Vice president of di Academic Staff Union of University (Asuu) confam di suspension to BBC News. Di union decide to suspend di strike during dia meeting wey enta Thursday midnight into early mor-mor on Friday. Di meeting hold for di union office for Abuja, Nigeria capital. Oga Piwuna say dem call off di meeting to decide on dia next action. Asuu suspension of di strike dey happun afta Appeal Court give dem condition to obey di ruling of di Industrial court. Remember say on Monday Asuu bin hold key meeting wit di leadership of di House of Representatives for Abuja. BBC Pidgin neva get di conditions wey make di lecturers suspend di strike. Why ASUU dey strike ASUU currently dey on strike for more dan eight months. Di public universities lecturers dey demand di implementation of one agreement di federal goment sign wit dem for 2009 plus oda demands. One of di major issue wey dey block negotiation between goment delegates and ASUU na di payment platform. ASUU dey insist say goment must use to take pay dem salary. Di president of ASUU Victor Emmanuel Osodeke say di National Information and Technology Development Agency (NITDA) wey suppose conduct integrity test on di University Transparency Accountability Solution (UTAS) don abandon am even afta dem upgrade di payment platform. But Minister of Labour and Productivity, Chris Ngige say ASUU dey try prolong di strike by making negotiation impossible. E explain give say why dem dey insist on UTAS even wen NITDA say e fail integrity test and pipo fit commit fraud on top di platform wey lead to huge moni. Di rest of dia demands dey inside di 2009 agreement ASUU sign wit federal goment but ASUU say di goment still dey drag leg ontop di mata. Meaning of Utas UTAS na University Transparency and Accountability Solution (UTAS). In simple words, Utas na payment platform. Lecturers for public universities for Nigeria create am as an alternative to di Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) wey Nigeria federal goment dey use. Currently, goment dey use Ippis pay salaries to about 711 ministries, departments and agencies but Asuu say dem no want. Dem claim say plenty corruption dey happun wit di use of Ippis. Meanwhile, di National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), organ of goment wey dey regulate di use of technology for Nigeria don test di Utas wey Asuu bring - and dem don approve am. ASUU Strike Nigeria timeline from 2009 to 2022 2022 ASUU Strike Di Academic Staff Union of Universities begin strike on February 14 2022 to demand for beta condition of service wey dem agree for 2009 agreement. Di strike end for October. 2020 ASUU Strike Di union bin go on on nine-month strike sake of non-payment of allowances to lecturers wey no enrol under di goment payroll system, wey ASUU bin want replace wit dia own. 2018 ASUU Strike One three-month strike bin happun sake of poor funding of education and increment of school fees wey goment bin plan. 2017 ASUU Strike Afta dem sign anoda MOU in September 2017, di union bin suspend dia 36-day strike wey bin happun sake of allegations say goment fail to implement agreement from previous year. 2014 ASUU Strike One week warning strike bin dey sake of say Nigerian goment no implement di 2009 agreement and one MoU wey dem reach for 2013. 2013 ASUU Strike University lecturers bin go on strike for about six months as dem demand say make retirement age for professor dey extended to 70 instead of 65, and make goment increase allocation to education from 15% - 20% of di kontri annual budget. 2011 ASUU Strike 2009 agreement wey goment no meet na why di union bin go on a 59-day strike. 2010 ASUU Strike ASUU bin go on indefinite strike in July 2010 wey last for over five months. 2009 ASUU Strike Four months strike sake of 2007 agreement wey goment no meet wey involve demand for increase of budgetary allocation to education in Nigeria.