The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) said its ongoing strike would not end, despite President Muhammadu Buhari’s order to pay the lecturers’ withheld February and March 2020 salaries.

The Federal Government had previously withheld the lecturers’ salaries due to their refusal to register in the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS).

The union, among other matters, embarked on an indefinite strike, arguing that the implementation of the IPPIS was contrary to the agreement between the Federal Government and ASUU in 2009.

Responding to the presidential order to pay the withheld salaries, ASUU’s National President, Prof. Abiodun Ogunyemi, insisted that the lecturers would not resume work, because IPPIS is not the reason they embarked on the strike.

Instead, he said that the payment would pave the way for a meaningful dialogue with the government.

Now, we can discuss without an atmosphere of intimidation. This will lead to a meaningful dialogue. The ongoing industrial strike action by the union is still on. Our strike is not just about the IPPIS,

he added.

He also questioned the Federal Government’s motive for asking Vice-Chancellors to pay lecturers with their Bank Verification Number (BVN).

Ogunyemi said,

If they had not paid at this time, with what everyone is going through, it would have meant a declaration of war. The discussion will start when they pay. They have even attached a condition to the payment.

Our members weren’t paid with BVN in the past. Why the sudden change? They should go back to the old system which they have always used to pay.

The ASUU president noted that the Federal Government is not doing the affected lecturers any favour by paying their salaries, adding that

Members worked in February and we were still working in March before this coronavirus pandemic broke. It is expected that a labourer is paid his wages. Even as we are talking, people are supposed to be prepared to get their April salary.

A top official of ASUU, who is among the negotiation team in the FG-ASUU IPPIS crisis, however, told our correspondent that top officials of the union would meet after the salary payments, in order to determine the next line of action.

The moment the salaries are paid, the National Executive Committee of the union would meet to deliberate on the next line of action,

he said.

The Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr. Chris Ngige, on Tuesday, April 21st, 2020 said the President had directed the Minister of Finance, Budget and Planning, and the Accountant General of the Federation to urgently make the payments, to alleviate the adverse effects of COVID-19 lockdown on lecturers and their families.

The Labour Minister added that all the Vice-Chancellors of universities were asked to revalidate the affected lecturers’ Bank Verification Numbers (BVN) and forward them to the Accountant General of the Federation for the payments.

The Federal Government had directed all federal tertiary institutions in Nigeria to enroll in the IPPIS effective from February 2020.

Justin Nwosu

Justin Nwosu is the founder and publisher of Flavision. His core interest is in writing unbiased news about Nigeria in particular and Africa in general. He’s a strong adherent of investigative journalism, with a bent on exposing corruption, abuse of power and societal ills.