Group appeals to ASUU to call off strike

Having remained adamant over the ongoing
strike, and with the open threat to continue
with its strike over the non-implementation
of the agreement it arrived with the federal
government in 2001, Nigerians at all
quarters have continued to appeal to ASUU
and the Federal government to apply the
principle of effective dialogue in order to
put an end to the protracted face-off.
Adding his words to the ongoing strike that
has kept students at home for this long, the
Director of Youth and Students Affairs of the
Goodluck Support Group (GSG), Prince Eka
Williams has appealed to ASUU to consider
the effort of the Federal Government so far
and call off its strike which he said was
devastating and demoralising. Eka said that
even though ASUU was fighting a just
course, it must consider that the
government of Jonathan has accepted to
bear responsible of the burden transferred
to his government from another
administration. He appealed to the
University body to also consider the plight of
Nigerian students and call off the strike.
The Directorate of Youth and Students
Affairs of the Goodluck Support Group (GSG)
,hereby appeals to the Academic Staff Union
of Universities (ASUU) to call-off its lingering
strike action,in consideration of the teeming
university students of Nigeria who are the
greatest losers in the face-off.
We are not in doubt that ASUU’s strike
action is altruistic and intended to improve
the general quality of education in the
country. But there is need for the union to
reconsider its rigid stance, in view of the
counterproductive effect it could have on
the educational sector due to the gross
distortions in the academic calendars of
universities and its demoralizing effects on
the students.
Although the FG-ASUU Agreement which is
the crux of the current strike action was
reached in 2001, prior to the advent of the
incumbent administration, President
Goodluck Jonathan has taken full
responsibility in realization that government
is a continuum
This informed his setting-up of the Gabriel
Suswan-led Committee for the needs
assessment of ASUU. The committee is
reputed to be the most powerful FG
committee ever set-up in the country to look
into the issue of the union, comprised of top
government functionaries and institutions.
There is no doubt that the committee is
poised to come up with recommendations
that will be beneficial to both parties
involved in the dispute.
Therefore, we urge ASUU to apply one of the
cardinal principles of negotiation, which is
simply “give and take” in order to arrive at a
reasonable compromise that would move
the nation’s educational sector forward.