THE Federal Government has summoned a meeting with the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, SSANU and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions, NASU on Thursday at the Office of the Minister of Education.

The meeting is coming on the heels of the expiration of a two-week ultimatum the Joint Action Committee, JAC, of SSANU and NASU issued to the Federal Government to pay them their four months withheld salaries or they will shutdown universities.

It will be recalled that the Federal Government through the Ministry of Labour and Employment invoked the ‘No work, no pay’ policy when the four university based unions embarked on a prolonged strike in 2022.

But President Bola Tinubu in October last year granted amnesty to the university workers and directed that four months of the withheld salaries should be paid.

The Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman, had also said that the payment was for all the university workers that participated in the strike.

While the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, has been paid their four months withheld salaries as directed by President Tinubu, the other three unions which includes the National Association of Academic Technologists, NAAT, are yet to receive their payment, a development that has generated tension and threat to down tools.

In desperate move to avert the looming strike, Vanguard reliably gathered that the government has fixed a meeting with SSANU and NASU by 1pm on Thursday to address the contentious issues.

A source privy to the meeting said, “The Minister of Education has called to meet with SSANU and NASU tomorrow (today) maybe to persuade us not to go on strike. We will honour the invitation. We are also going to meet with the Minister of State for Labour and Employment by 3 pm tomorrow (today).”

It was also gathered that the JAC of SSANU and NASU has scheduled to meet by 10 am on Thursday before going for the meeting.

Recall that the JAC had planned to meet on July 4, after the expiration of the two weeks ultimatum to review the response of government to their demands and declare an indefinite strike if the government refused to pay the withheld salaries. (Vanguard)

Update news