Strike: After Meeting With ASUU, Reps Leadership To Meet Buhari
Leaders of the House of Representatives that met with ASUU on Tuesday have disclosed that they will meet with President Muhammadu Buhari over the seven-month-long strike of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
Speaker of the house of representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, made this known on Tuesday after about five hours of a closed-door meeting with ASUU leaders and minister of state for education, Goodluck Opiah, at the national assembly.
The legislators revealed that they will meet with President Buhari when he returns to Nigeria, although a date has not yet been set for the meeting.
The President is currently in New York, United States, attending the 77th session of the United Nations general assembly (UNGA).
Meanwhile, the lawmakers have gone ahead to invite the accountant-general of the federation, National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), auditor-general of the federation, and the National Salaries Incomes and Wages Commission (NSIWC) to “finalise” on the meeting held with ASUU.
The government officials invited are to meet with the house’s leadership on Thursday.
Briefing journalists after the meeting on Tuesday, Hon. Gbajabiamila said that both parties reached some resolutions during the long discussion.
“There are seven areas that ASUU has presented — what we consider to be requisition to go back to class,” he said.
“We have looked at these seven areas and we have more or less agreed on certain things.
“Pursuant to finalising the meeting of our minds, we have asked that NITDA, accountant-general, auditor-general and the National Salaries Incomes and Wages Commission (NSIWC) will be invited.
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“Unfortunately, it’s too late to invite them tomorrow because the letters will only go out tomorrow. They will be invited to meet with the leadership on Thursday so that we can dot the ‘i’ and ‘t’.
“We will meet with Mr President and lay before him the agreement made by this arm of government — the legislature and leadership of this house. We are hopeful and believe that Mr President will buy into the agreement and with that, I believe that this matter will be speedily brought to a close.
“In the meantime, between now and when Mr President comes, ASUU itself will go back to its members with the resolutions that we have come up with today.”
Emmanuel Osodeke, ASUU president, disclosed that He and the participants of the meeting from the ASUU camp would discuss the resolutions reached with the lawmakers with members of the union.
“In the very near future, the issue (strike) will be resolved,” he said.
