Asuu says it is willing to return to work after losing appeal against industrial court judgement

UNIVERSITY lecturers are planning to call off their eight month long strike that has crippled activities across the country's tertiary institutions in response to a recent National Industrial Court ruling which ordered them back to work.

Since February, most tertiary institutions across Nigeria have been closed as a result of a strike by lecturer's union the Academic Staff Union of Universities (Asuu). Due to an inability of the government and the union to reach an agreement on her pay and conditions of academics, institutions have remained shut but on September 21, the government secured a court judgement ordering the lecturers back to work.

Following the ruling, Asuu appealed the judgement and on Friday, the Federal Court of Appeal in Abuja upheld the National Industrial Court judgement. Ordering the lecturers back to work after dismissing the union’s application for a stay of execution on the National Industrial Court ruling, the appellate court asked the union to call off the industrial action.

Femi Falana, Asuu's counsel, said that his clients were ready to call off the strike but he also called on the federal government to fast track and finalise its negotiations with the union. He expressed confidence that a recent meeting between the speaker of the House of Representatives Hon Femi Gbajabiamila and the presidency over the matter, would yield positive results.

Mr Falana said: “Our clients are ready to call off the strike but the federal government should fast track the and finalise the negotiations. Hon Gbajabiamila and his colleagues in the House of Representatives have been in touch with the presidency over the matter and I am reasonably confident that the consultations between the House and the presidency will yield positive results in the interest of the striking lecturers and the students.”

Following a meeting with the presidency in Friday, Hon Gbajabiamila said the House has done its part to end the strike and Nigerians will hear the outcome of the deliberations from the president. Asuu president, Professor Emmanuel Osodeke had said that the union will study the ruling of the appeal court which ordered its members to return back to work.