ASUU Urges President Tinubu to Implement 2009 Nimi-Briggs Committee’s Recommendations

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has called on President Bola Tinubu to implement the recommendations of the 2009 Nimi-Briggs committee’s renegotiated agreements.

In a statement on Thursday, the Ibadan Zonal Coordinator of ASUU, Professor Oyebamiji Oyegoke, urged Tinubu to address the central demands of public university lecturers and stop being insensitive to their plight.

Oyegoke highlighted that the federal government has not mainstreamed billions of Earned Academic Allowances owed to ASUU members, nor has it commenced the implementation of the Nimi-Briggs Renegotiated 2009 draft agreements.

He expressed concern over the pauperization of the intelligentsia, leading to an increase in the brain drain phenomenon, with newly appointed lecturers resigning for better opportunities abroad.

ASUU criticized the government for its approach, stating, “Instead of doing the needful by signing and implementing the Nimi-Briggs Committee’s Renegotiated Agreement, the best of what FGN can offer is the whimsical awards of 35% and 25% to Professorial ranks and other levels by the National Wages, Salaries and Income Commission by the Buhari administration; a case of fighting the effects and not the cause of a problem.”

The union cited examples of unpaid salaries in federal and state universities, including Osun State University, which has not paid members who participated in the 2020 strike action.

ASUU lamented the recent announcement of one, two, or three months’ salaries instead of the owed seven and a half months’ salary to its members, despite their commitments and dedication.

ASUU’s statement underscores the ongoing challenges faced by university lecturers in Nigeria and the urgent need for the government to address their demands to enhance the quality of education in the country.