What Do You Mean By Enough Is Enough? ASUU Responds To Buhari 

– Knocks Chris Ngige Over Comment 

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has expressed shock at President Muhammadu Buhari’s recent statement telling members of the union that “enough is enough” over their continued strike. 

On Monday, President  Buhari had expressed worry over the prolonged strike, saying it had gone on long enough. 

“We hope that ASUU will sympathize with the people on the prolonged strike. Truly, enough is enough for keeping students at home. Don’t hurt the next generation for goodness sake,” he said. 

But reacting when he appeared on Channels TV’s Sunrise Daily on Thursday, Osodeke said he did not understand why President Buhari spoke the way he did because “we are not the one delaying the students at home.”

He said, “The Federal Government has sent its team to negotiate with us and we have finished. Instead of coming back to us to tell us the outcome of the meeting, we are hearing this.

“If you set up a committee to negotiate on your behalf, and the committee has finished and they have brought the information to you to sign and then you said enough is enough, what does this mean?” he said. 

The ASUU President also heavily criticised the Minister of Labour, Chris Ngige, for accusing him of misinformation. 

In a statement on Wednesday, Ngige had said there was no ‘collective bargaining agreement’ between the FG and ASUU waiting to be signed by the President, contrary to Osodeke’s claim. 

The continuous disagreements between representatives of the FG and ASUU have served to further deepen the dilemma between both parties, indicating that the ASUU strike might continue to linger. 

Speaking during the programme, Osodeke criticised Ngige for the comment, saying, “What the Minister of Labour has done is a complete insult to the character of people like Professor Nimi Briggs, Senator Chris Adighije, Professor Olu Obafemi.

“The minister instead of looking for how to resolve the problem is busy abusing his colleagues, abusing even the Minister of Education. 

“It is so sad that we have gotten to a stage where our children are lamenting at home and the Minister of Labour is busy churning out fake information and misinforming the public, trying to undermine the integrity of ASUU,” he said.

The Federal Government had inaugurated the renegotiation committee with ASUU on March 7, 2022 to negotiate the 2009 FG-ASUU agreement. The committee, which is headed by Prof Nimi Briggs, the Pro-Chancellor of Alex Ekweme Federal University, was meant to submit its report three months after it was inaugurated to the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu. 

Some of the committee members include Pro-Chancellor, Federal University, Wukari, Arc. Lawrence Patrick Ngbale, who represents North East; Pro-Chancellor, Federal University, Birnin Kebbi, Prof. Funmi Togunu-Bickersteth, representing South West and Pro-Chancellor, Federal University, Lokoja, Senator Chris Adighije, representing South East.

The other members are Pro-Chancellor, Federal University of Technology, Minna, Prof. Olu Obafemi from North-Central; Pro-Chancellor, Kano State University of Science & Technology, Prof. Zubairu Iliyasu, representing North West; and Pro-Chancellor, Niger Delta University, Wilberforce Island, Mathew Seiyefa from South-South.

ASUU commenced its strike on February 14th 2022, citing different demands that the FG had failed to meet as its reasons. 

Some of the demands include payments of salary arrears, better working conditions, renegotiation of the 2009 FG-ASUU agreement, payment of earned academic allowances, funds for the revitalization of public universities, and promotion arrears, and poor funding of state universities.