The Academic Staff Union of the University of Abuja Zone (ASUU-Abuja) has called on the Federal Government to implement the 2009 agreement and release their three-and-a-half months? withheld salaries to avoid a strike.

Al-Amin Abdullahi, Zonal Coordinator, ASUU Abuja Zone, made the call during a news conference on Monday in Abuja.

?There is a crisis that is affecting universities in Nigeria, and it is not just a problem for ASUU; it is a problem for the entire country.

?The purposeful mortgage of a nation?s future and the endangerment of generations yet to be born is the result of a nation?s disregard of education.

?Until Nigeria has a university system that assures effective education, excellent research, innovation, and sustainable national development, the Academic Staff Union of Universities will not give up,? he said.

He reiterated that the ASUU, Abuja Zone, was demanding the payment of promotion arrears of its members, unconditional release of their three and a half months of withheld salaries, and release of third-party deductions to the union and cooperatives.

Also, the payment of one year?s arrears of 25/35 per cent salary award to its members, the implementation of the new conditions of service for its members, and the adoption of UTAS as a payment system for universities.

?It is impossible for a nation to advance or develop beyond the level of the standard of its university system.

?Despite this, successive administrations in Nigeria have decided to underfund universities on a systemic basis, which has resulted in the nation?s institutions having deteriorating infrastructure.

?Overcrowded classrooms, laboratories that are inadequately equipped, and hostel amenities that are uninhabitable,? he said.

He said that this neglect of proper funding for educational institutions has resulted in unconducive learning environments and a decline in the global ranking of Nigerian universities, among other things.

Abdullahi said that in keeping with the UNESCO convention, ASUU demands that both federal and state governments make education a priority through increased annual budgetary allocations.

He said that the union, since the inception of the present administration, has used the practice of dialogue to resolve their differences with the government over its demands.

He noted that the use of dialogue has made it possible that in the past two years, there have not been any general ASUU strikes.

The zonal coordinator disclosed the federal government-ASUU 2009 Agreement, which includes the implementation of a new condition of service for academics and the renegotiation of the 2009 FGN-ASUU Agreement.

?Revitalization of public universities, university autonomy, and academic freedom. The reassessment of the legal frameworks for regulating bodies like the National Universities Commission and JAMB has remained unresolved,? he said. (BusinessDay)

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