IN his media chat with a team of journalists in September this year, President Goodluck Jonathan declared his government's commitment to end the logjam with the striking Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, by effecting the changes demanded by the lecturers.
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This followed an earlier directive to the Federal Government's negotiating committees, the Universities Needs Implementation Committee and the Earned Allowances Committee, to take immediate action to end the ASUU strike. Chairman of the needs committee, Governor Gabriel Suswam of Benue State, told journalists after a meeting held by the President with the committees, "The President has instructed us as to what to do, and has shown commitment to flagging off projects worth about N100 billion in all the Universities in the country! About 61 of them. He gave assurance that the lecturers would call off the strike in no distant time.
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Several months after those assurances were given, the funds are yet to be released. Investigations at several universities indicated that no one has received a dime.