Former governor of Enugu State, Chimaraoke Nnamani, has said the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) should consider the debt burden on the Federal government and call off their seven months strike.
Newsonline reports that Chimaroke Nnamani said ASUU should take a cue from similar trade unions like the Austrian National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) and study how such issues are resolved, than keeping Nigerian children at home.
The senator who represents Enugu East in the National Assembly also lamented that ASUU as a body had engaged in too many strike actions starting from the 1970s to the present administration.
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In a series of tweets, Chimaroke Nnamani said, “But one would expect ASUU, a union that has been concerned about the Nigerian debt service crisis since 1984, to comprehend the dire circumstances in which our country has found itself.
“Our debt burden, which is determined by the ratio of our revenue to debt, is critical, and any additional rise in the budget deficit would be catastrophic for our nation.
“ASUU should take a page out of similar trade unions around the world like the Austrian National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) and study how they handle similar issues to prevent a strike that affects the entire nation.
“The future of millions of young Nigerians is at jeopardy due to these ongoing strikes. ASUU continues to assert that it is fighting for tertiary education in Nigeria and by extension, for Nigerian students.”
Recall that ASUU went on strike on the 14 of February. However, the seven months strike entered an indefinite strike last Monday, following allegations from the university lecturers body that the Federal government led by President Muhammadu Buhari was not committed to resolving the issue.
ASUU president, Professor Emmanuel Osedeke had called on the students to vote out the APC administration come 2023 election.