By Johnbosco Agbakwuru

The Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige has said that he has done what many cannot do to forestall strikes by the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU.

Senator Ngige also dismissed insinuations that he is responsible for the ongoing action by the union, saying that his work was only to conciliate and not to implement agreements reached.

Speaking on a Silver Bird Television Live Interview Programme, the Minister said he has successfully conciliated 1683 industrial disputes since assumption of office in 2015, and has been taking extra measures beyond his statutory responsibilities, to forestall strike and ensure action is promptly suspended when workers unions make it inevitable.

Ngige also said the untiring efforts of his office towards peaceful national industrial milieu , sleepless nights as a parent whose children are also in the public universities and who equally bear the brunt of ASUU strike, are being undermined by an erroneous impression by some Nigerians over his role as a conciliator, and by the uncooperative, anti-labour attitude of ASUU leadership

The Minister insisted that the role of the Minister of Labour is to conciliate disputes and does not include the implementation of agreements so reached with parties.

“However, when conciliation fails, the Minister is under obligation by section 9 and 14 of Trade Disputes Act, Cap T8, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria to transmit the results of the negotiation to the Industrial Arbitration Panel (IAP) or to National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN)

“In the ongoing ASUU imbroglio, I’m the conciliator. I bring them to negotiate with their employers – the Ministry of Education and the National University Commission as well as IPPIS, the office of the Accountant General of the Federation, all under the Ministry of Finance.

“At the end of every negotiation, we put down what everybody has agreed on in writing and add timelines for implementation.

“But let me tell you. There is nothing new about ASUU strike. It has been a recurrent decimal. In the last twenty years, ASUU has gone on strike, sixteen times. So , there is nothing new as such.

“What is new however is that I have done what Napoleon could not do. You can ask them, the ASUU leadership. I’m sure that in the innermost part of their hearts, they can’t sweep away my untiring efforts. I’m the only conciliator lately, who has conciliated and put timelines on agreements and pushed all the parties, the government side to implement and stick to the timelines. Such fidelity wasn’t there hitherto.

“Last year alone, based on the timelines I put on the 2020 agreement , they got N92.7b in terms of Revitalization and Earned Academic/ Earned Allowances for the university system. I went out of the schedule of my office, to the Ministry of Finance , to the Office of the Accountant General myself , on occasions , to ensure these monies were paid.

“Yes, I did it. I did same for doctors and other health professional operating under JOHESU. I promised in 2015 when the President appointed me that the era when agreements were left to gather dusts were over and I have maintained it. I work even at odd hours, late night , at times far into morning hours to ensure things work.

“I recall that in 2020 when ASUU went on strike and refused virtual meetings which COVID-19 imposed, turned down all appeals by the federal government to call off the strike and engage the virtual teaching of their students as was done in the private universities, the Federal Government had no option but to invoke No work, No pay in line with section 43 of the Trade Disputes Act after three month of the strike. As a parent whose children with others already lost nine months of academic teachings, I approached the President to approve payment to ASUU on humanitarian ground, despite not teaching for nine month!

“I have also personally suggested to ASUU to appoint a general secretary and deputy as part of its secretariat to do the leg work, follow up on its matters, since its leadership, comprising professors, senior citizens may not stand the bottle necks and delays usually associated with public service bureaucracy.”

The Minister regretted that the current ASUU strike has prolonged because the university teachers have made negotiation difficult.

“Negotiation now is being made impossible by ASUU. For example , ASUU insists that National Information and Technology Development Agency (NITDA) should take the payment platform, University Transparency Accountability Solution (UTAS) that it developed and deploy it for payment in the university whether it is good or bad , whether it failed integrity and vulnerability test or not.

https://www.vanguardngr.com/2022/04/ASUU-i-have-done-what-napoleon-couldnt-do-ngige/

Ngige and hypocrisies are like 5&6

Iffa deck you

Oga you have done nothing more than growing a bigger tommy, looking for who to endorse for presidency so you can be given money. Our kids have been home for months,, like wtf

Hope people understand his role and responsibilities clearly. Why the blame is mostly on him baffles me. Why not Buhari, min of educ, min of fin, AGF, econ et al.

Legendforte:
Hope people understand his role and responsibilities clearly. Why the blame is mostly on him baffles me. Why not Buhari, min of educ, min of fin, AGF, econ et al.

They're all neck deep in this but yes i don't know why people fault only him .

If words are to be believed by how sweet, curtailed, and emotional as they sound, then many would have fallen for this sheepless talk.
Both parties have to reach out to a reasonable conclusion and end this whole strike of a thing. People are suffering, engaging in all forms of nefarious activities and also having mental effect as a consequence of the lingering strike







Kindly check my signature for your Assignments, Projects, Advertisements, Content research, etc...

The Man is not to be blamed at all time is only a mediator to the both parties and those groups of professor that like to seat in one place and get results are also causing problem Ngige suggestion is let them appoint secretary that will also do their leg work redtapism always play in Nigeria administration system.

Nigeria really needs to grow beyond this level

Another thief explaining..

Buhari really reduced the quality of governance, if a whole president can be talking about grazing route for cows in 2022, then you can imagine what his employees will be talking about. see what this one is saying...

Eleribu somebody………If not that we celebrate mediocrity in this part of the world, what has this miserable failure accomplished that warrants him blowing his trumpet?

Foolish man

If you're an undergraduate, I'll advise you to go and learn a skill.

Don't waste your time waiting until ASUU call off the strike, because like this, ASUU and FG ain't ready to call off the strike

Mad dog.
See mouth like mouth that has never tasted pepper soup.
You n APC are deceitful.
ASUU ll strike till after Buhari's tenure

For ASUU chairman mind is like : I don't trust this man


For Chris ngige mind is like : all these ASUU people mumu finish
So Una dey reason say we go fulfill the agreement. Make Una nor worry after election Una go return back to strike.

Legendforte:
Hope people understand his role and responsibilities clearly. Why the blame is mostly on him baffles me. Why not Buhari, min of educ, min of fin, AGF, econ et al.

im also thinking about this

people tend to forget the minister of education takes the blame here, but they push ngige to the front while cowering behind

This man is the most useless labour minister ever, always full of himself, talking as if he's doing the ASUU a favour. Under your watch, Nigeria has seen the worst form of emigration of nurses and doctors for greener pastures while he's there blabbing. Useless ministers under useless government. Jonathan maybe clueless about governance but he employed best hands as his ministers.

Ngige has been doing all the work and talking.

But where is the minister of Education?

His silence on this issue is too loud.

Ewo werey

Stupid man

Yes of course, that is why the entire university unions are on strike.

Nzxnsnns

Loveurneighbour:
By Johnbosco Agbakwuru




https://www.vanguardngr.com/2022/04/ASUU-i-have-done-what-napoleon-couldnt-do-ngige/

HON. LOWER YOUR MIC

Which Napoleon? Bonaparte abi hin broda?
Always talking as if he just chewed alligator pepper