By Michael Ofulue, Osogbo
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The Committee of Vice Chancellors of Nigerian Universities (CVCNU) has reiterated the need for the Federal Government and Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to resolve lingering issues to end the ongoing strike.
Chairman of the committee, Prof. Samuel Edoumiekumo, said this in an interview on Sunday in Abuja.
He said it was crucial for both parties to come to an agreement to end the strike as soon as possible.
He urged them to honour agreements entered into for academic activities to commence in the affected universities.
“We have already given a press release arising from the meeting of the general assembly of the committee.
“We said that ASUU and the Federal Government should amicably resolve all lingering issues,” he said.
Edoumiekumo, who is the Vice Chancellor of Niger Delta University, expressed optimism that the issues would be resolved soon.
In another development, the Osun State Council of Obas have expressed concern about the incessant face off between the federal government and members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) ,stressing that the development is giving the education sector a serious setback.
The monarchs noted that as custodians of culture and traditions of the Nigerian federation, they cannot continue to fold their arms and watch things degenerate beyond limit. .
Speaking on behalf of the traditional rulers, the Timi of Ede, Oba Munirudeen Adesola Lawal, bemoaned the incessant face off between the Federal Government snd ASUU .
He noted that education remains the bedrock of the growth and development of any situation, emphasized the need for both sides to bury their hatchets and allow reasons and decency to prevail.
“For the overall interest of the students, their parents and the Nigerian federation, this cannot be emphasized.
” It is high time they saw reason on the need to embrace peace and harmony for the growth of our country’s educational sector.
We are calling on President Muhammadu Buhari to use the executive power and authority at his disposal to nail the coffin of this impasse in the mud once and for all.
ASUU had on February 14 embarked on strike to press home some demands including call for government to implement Memorandum of Action (MoA) signed in December 2020 on funding for revitalisation of public universities.
Other demands are Earned Academic Allowances, renegotiation of the 2009 agreement and the deployment of the University Transparency and Accountability Solution (UTAS) among others.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige, had on Friday stated that the Federal Government and ASUU would resume negotiation this week.
