FG declares ASUU's two-week warning strike illegal

The federal government has declared illegal the ongoing warning strike by ASUU - The minister of labour and employment, Chris Ngige, said the union did not give the government the mandatory strike notice - However, while Ngige attributed the strike to the disagreement over IPPIS, the lecturers had cited the FG's alleged failure to honour previous agreements as the reason for the strike The federal government has declared illegal the current two-week warning strike embarked upon by the Academic Staff Union of Universities. The minister of labour and employment, Chris Ngige, made the declaration on Wednesday, March 11, after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, Nigerian Tribune reports. Ngige said he was shocked by the strike action, claiming that the union did not give the government the mandatory strike notice. While noting that it was illegal for the university teachers to withdraw their services, he hinted that they should not expect to be paid while on strike. He, however, added that efforts were on to resolve the disagreement. “They didn’t give us the mandatory notice before going on strike. So for a start, this strike is illegal. They said it is a warning striking but there is nothing like warning strike. A strike is withdrawal of services for which you are being paid. “Then the question will arise, if you don’t go to work, do you want to be paid? Is it not corruption? So this is the dilemma," he said. The labour minister added that he has invited the lecturers to a meeting scheduled for Thursday, March 12. While the minister insinuated that the ASUU's strike is based on the disagreement over the implementation of the Integrated Personnel Payroll Information System (IPPIS), Legit.ng notes that the union said the strike was as a result of the federal government's alleged failure to honour the agreements it had with the union. ASUU had announced the commencement of the warning strike at the end of the National Executive Council meeting (NEC) held at the Enugu State University of Science and Technology. PAY ATTENTION: Get the Latest Nigerian News 24/7. Spend less on the Internet! Barely a month ago, Legit.ng had reported that the disagreement between the ASUU had taken a new dimension as the union said it had commenced national mobilisation for strike action against the federal government. The union had said the move was as a result of the failed implementation of an agreement it reached with the union by the federal government. This was disclosed by the chairman of ASUU, University of Ibadan chapter, Professor Deji Omole. He lamented that successive governments in Nigeria have positioned themselves to make Nigeria retrogressive. Going further, the association alleged that the federal government is a serial defaulter and bad example for Nigerian youths.