There are indications that the lingering strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) would be called off soon, after officials of the union met with Senate President David Mark behind closed door on Monday.
Though details of the meeting which lasted over two hours were not made public, it was gathered that ASUU promised to call off the strike so that students could return to their classrooms soon.
Welcoming the ASUU delegation led by its president Dr. Nasir Fagge, Mark said the strike action has taken hardship on the students, parents and even the lecturers saying “it is time we resolve this matter in the interest of the nation.
“This is not a case of winners or losers. It is not a matter of ego. National interest is at stake. We must do all that is necessary to resolve this matter so that students and teachers return to classes.
“Nobody is happy about the strike action now in its fourth month. Nobody is happy that our educational system is threatened by this ugly development. Let us end this strike for good “Senator Mark pleaded.
President of ASUU, Dr. Fagge,said the struggle was necessitated by the need to improve the infrastructure and learning environment in the universities with a view to producing graduates that can equal their counterparts anywhere in the world.
He said the strike does not in any way profit the Lecturers but a needed sacrifice for government to do what is right in the education sector pointing out that ” we are not just lecturers, we are also parents and students, so the strike is also affecting us negatively.”
The Lecturers, he added are neither happy nor proud of their products (graduates) any more because they cannot compete favourably with their counterparts across the globe on account of poor learning environment.
The situation, he said has been made worse because Nigerians now migrate to other nations in the quest for quality education.
The meeting later went into a closed door parley for about two and half hours.
Those in attendance were professor Festus Iyayi, Dr. Dipo Fashina, professor Abdullahi Sule-Kano, professor Biodun Ogunyemi, professor Victor Osodeke, Dr. A.B.Baffa, professor Suleiman Abdul, Dr.victor Igbum,and Mr. Michael Odunmorayo.