Education Minister Condemns ASUU’s New Demands, Calls It Outrageous

Following the recent meeting between President Goodluck Jonathan and the Academic Staff Union of Universities ASUU, supervising minister and minister of state for education, Barr Nyesom Wike, on Monday condemned the new conditions which the union insists must be met before a truce could be achieved.

The minister expressed this view while meeting with state
commissioners of education in Abuja. He confirmed that ASUU had given
new conditions to call off its four-month-old strike.

According to him, "ASUU has given new conditions, after they had an
agreement with President Goodluck Jonathan at the villa."

He said he would meet with the president on the new conditions by
ASUU.Among the three conditions given by ASUU in order to end the
strike were payment of four months salaries arrears which accumulated
during the period of the strike; immediate implementation of the N1.2
trillion offered by the federal government to public universities,
starting with the release of N100 billion this year and the balance of
N1.1trillion to be spread over five years from 2014.

The union also demanded that the salary arrears must not be paid in
piece meal. These were some of the resolutions reached by members of
the National Executive Council of the union that met in Kano on Friday
which have been sent to the federal government before they call off
the strike.Meanwhile, the minister at the meeting with the
commissioners assured them of the readiness of the federal government
to support any state government in the development of its education
sector.

"We must look at best approaches in the development of our educational
sector. It is also imperative for both the federal government and all
the states government to collaborate, as for the ministry we would
support any state government that want to develop it education," Wike
said.