ASUU Strike: NUPENG Threatens Solidarity Action

Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural
Gas Workers, NUPENG, weekend,
threatened stop distribution of petroleum
products across the country if the Federal
Government failed to implement the
agreement reached with the Academic Staff
Union of Universities, ASUU.
Though no specific date was fixed for the
commencement of the soliarity strike, the
union said the strike became necessary in
view of the lingering ASUU crisis which the
government had failed to resolve in the last
three months.
NUPENG President, Igwe Achese, who
spoke at the union’s National
Administrative Council, NAC, meeting,
weekend in Lagos, said NUPENG was not
happy at the crisis facing public university
system in the country.
He blamed the crisis on government’s
failure to honour agreements, lamenting
that this had led to the proliferation of
strikes in nearly all sectors of the economy
since the beginning of the year.
According to him: “We appeal to
government to implement agreement
reached with ASUU so that students can go
back to school. If the crisis in the sector is
not resolved, we will soon direct our
members to embark on solidarity strike.”
Achese blamed the Ministry of Labour for
failing in its responsibility to check the
break-down and abuse of laws governing
industrial relations practice in the country
by employers including government.
“The Ministry of Labour needs to be
proactive if we must get these issues
nipped in the bud. The ministry also needs
to make sure that agreements reached or
communiqué signed are implemented.
“The ministry has a big role to play to avert
strikes in the country. When unions begin
to lose faith in the ministry that is when we
have this kind of crisis. The labour minister
should be firm in making sure that the right
decisions are taken.
“As it is now, every activity in the Ministry
of Labour is in the office of the Secretary to
the Government of the Federation, SGF,
which ought not to be so. The role of the
SGF should be to intervene only when the
need arises.”
It would be recalled that the NUT last week
gave the Federal Government two weeks
ultimatum to honour the agreement it
reached with ASUU or face total shut-down
of the education sector in the country.
http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/10/
ASUU-strike-nupeng-threatens-solidarity-
action/

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