Anthony Iwuoma
The Federal Government has insisted that it would pay members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) only for the days the lecturers worked, following the protest against alleged payment of incomplete salary in October.
Mallam Adamu Adamu, Minister of Education, who expressed the Federal Government stance at the end of the Federal Executive Council, FEC, meeting, presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Wednesday, told newsmen that the lecturers had been paid their rightful dues.
He said ASUU was wrong in accusing the government of attempting to turn university lecturers to ‘casual workers’, wondering how that could be possible.
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“The strike has been called off and the government has paid them what is due to them. I think that’s the position of the government; that it is not going to pay anyone for work not done and they only did, I think, the number of days that they were paid,” the minister said.
“How can anybody make a university lecturer a casual… Do you know the meaning of casual worker? If you know the meaning of the casual worker, it is impossible to make a university lecturer a casual worker.”
He denied knowledge of the lecturers’ planned work-free day protest, saying: “I’m not aware. I’m not aware. That they are going on strike? No, nobody has told me.
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“So, let’s wait till the work-free-day comes, then I’ll find out the details and we’ll discuss, you can ask me then, but at the moment, I’m telling you honestly, I do not know that there is a problem.”
Adamu refused to to speak on the claim by the President of the ASUU, Professor Emmanuel Osodoke, that the union only had an agreement with the Minister of Education and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, not with the Minister of Labour and Employment.
“I cannot add any light on something that I did not know. And since they said they have no business with the Minister of … Did they show you the agreement? Well, I’m not aware that there’s any agreement between us,” he said.
