'ASUU strike may be prolonged', lecturers warn students

Almost four weeks after lecturers started an indefinite nationwide strike, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has warned undergraduates that the strike may be prolonged.

The union said the ongoing strike may not be called off anytime soon because no concrete resolution has been reached in the negotiation with the Federal Government.

The union, therefore, called on parents and students to show understanding over the development to save Nigeria’s university system from collapse.

Biodun Ogunyemi, the union's National President said this in Lagos on Thursday, November 29, in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)

ASUU President (middle) Prof Biodun Ogunyemi and other members of the union. ece-auto-gen

Ogunyemi said the strike is not to short-change the students, parents and other key stakeholders but to save the country’s university system from collapse, NAN reports.

He said, ''the whole essence of this struggle is to ensure that our students get worthy and deserving certificates that they will be proud of anywhere they may find themselves in the world.

“The struggle is to ensure too that we save Nigerian universities from going the way our public primary and secondary schools have gone.

“Today, most parents are sending their children and wards to private primary and secondary schools around the country because of the perceived or alleged falling standards.

“We do not want our universities to go the same way because a lot of our parents may not be able to afford the private university fees’.

Recall that the university lecturers had on Monday, November 5, 2018, embarked on an indefinite strike, asking the Federal Government to implement the 2009 agreement it entered with them.

On Monday, November 26, 2018, the union and the government met to resolve the issues and suspend the strike, but both parties failed to reach an agreement.