In the spirit of this year’s International Workers’ Day, a presidential aspirant on the platform of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, Sunday, demanded swift resolution to the ongoing furore between the federal government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
ASUU on February 14, 2022 declared a nationwide strike to press home its demands from the federal government revolving around conditions of work, revitalisation of public universities across the country, among others.
Atiku, in a statement Sunday, charged concerned authorities to embrace approaches which can prevent recurrent industrial actions.
“I appeal to the federal and state governments to work harder to bring the Academic Staff Union of Universities and other striking labour unions back to negotiation table in the interest of the Nigerian youth and the educational system of the country, which is dying gradually due to these incessant labour unrests,” he stated.
Atiku also bemoaned the debilitating conditions under which Nigerian workers operate in the country, urging the federal government to ensure better welfare for them.
“I am concerned that salaries have remained static, food scarcity and inflation abound everywhere, children are out of schools due to no fault of yours, farmers can no longer go to farm for fear of bandits, traders cannot commute freely without being abducted, no energy to power industries and companies are shutting down geometrically, all conspired the burden on the citizenry,” he said.
He charged Nigerian workers “to adopt new approach to industrial actions and dispute resolution by pursuing labour-friendly policies and positions that will guarantee improved national productivity and better working conditions.”
