The Joint Action Committee (JAC) of the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU) and the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) has expressed strong disapproval of the recent inauguration of the Renegotiation Committee, labeling the event a charade.
The Renegotiation Committee was inaugurated on Tuesday at the Ministry of Education headquarters in Abuja. Although representatives from NASU and SSANU attended the ceremony, their presence was reportedly insignificant, as they were not assigned any formal role in the proceedings.
In a statement issued by Prince Peters Adeyemi, General Secretary of NASU, and Comrade Mohammed Ibrahim, President of SSANU, the unions criticized what they perceive as a bias favoring academic staff in the upcoming negotiations, which could be detrimental to non-teaching staff.
The statement read: “The Joint Action Committee of NASU and SSANU hereby strongly expresses its displeasure and disgust at the charade witnessed today, Tuesday, 15th October 2024, at the so-called inauguration of the Renegotiation Committee of the 2009 Agreements with Universities based Unions.”
The unions highlighted specific grievances regarding the organization of the event, noting that the letters of invitation referred to ASUU (Academic Staff Union of Universities) rather than NASU or SSANU. They indicated that the event seemed predominantly focused on ASUU, with only cursory mentions of other unions.
Additionally, they described a humiliating experience during the inauguration, where the President of ASUU was placed at what was termed the “Responsibility table,” while the presidents of NASU and SSANU were left in positions deemed “irresponsible.”
This incident has heightened concerns about the representation and consideration of non-teaching staff in the negotiations related to their agreements with the universities.