One of the most frequently asked
questions (FAQ), as it relates to ASUU/FG impasse, is whether strike action which
appears to be a protracted nostalgia to the effective education system is the only
means through which members of the Ivory tower press home their demand? This
question is being repeatedly asked even by some supposed informed (non)members.
Around the same axis, a quotation credited to Albert paraphrased as "it
is a form of madness to do the same thing repeatedly while expecting different
outcomes" is also being (mis)applied to judge ASUU's adamance to changing
its industrial dispute warfare. I, therefore, expect that after reading this
piece, readers could be able to answer these recycled questions correctly.
Let me address each question
separately. There are actually seven (7) approaches adopted by ASUU before
embarking on total and comprehensive indefinite strike action:
1. Official Engagements
When contentious issues
originate, be it on the welfare of academic staff, university system and facility
upgrade (revitalization), academic freedom (autonomy), the introduction of tuition
fee, or any other, ASUU deliberates on the matter rigorously and exhaustively.
If the matter has the potential to decrease the optimal performance of the university system, the union writes letters to all concerned protocol offices
to protest against it as well as to seek redress accordingly. If no reply is forthcoming which is mostly the case, a
follow-up letter is subsequently dispatched aimed at drawing the attention of
government officials to do the needful on time. I believe this is what is
obtainable in all correct and civilized systems. ASUU has been doing that from
day one to date. Does that work?
2. Honoring Invitations for
Meetings and Public Discussion
Another approach that ASUU
practices to settle the industrial disputes amicably is by making itself available
in all meetings and public fora scheduled to digest and resolve contentious
issues through dialogue. In such platforms, ASUU uses to prepare and present
memoranda to make its position known when required. This has been practiced
because ASUU favors fruitful deliberations that take into account holistic and
multisectoral considerations for sorting out differences and finding out
lasting solutions to problems. How many issues have you known that were
resolved through this important peaceful approach? Non!
3. Allowance for Stakeholder
Intervention
At times, when ASUU's grievances
became known, stakeholders both within and without the government (e.g.
legislative chambers, labor union, etc) extend their friendly hands willingly to
broker a truce between ASUU and the government. Of recent is the intervention by the Inter-Religious Council of Nigeria that ASUU gave a node to interphase. They
did, but nothing positive came out of it. Still, you think ASUU knows nothing
but strike action. This is shockingly ridiculous!
4. Acceptance of Challenge
Another beautiful approach that
ASUU demonstrates over time is its willingness to accept challenges. For instance, the
union was challenged by FG to develop a more reliable payment system that could
perfectly replace the embattled foreign system,
(IPPIS). ASUU accepted the challenge wholeheartedly and came up with
UTAS which passed a series of integrity tests it was subjected to. Also, the
union was once challenged by FG to propose the best funding options through which the education system could be better sustained and ASUU responded accordingly. Did
that work?
5. Public Condemnation and
Threat
After all possible attempts to
let government obey the above clean approaches got truncated, ASUU national will direct all zonal and local
branches to deliberate on the grey issues and issue out strong condemnation
against the nonchalant attitude of the government and threatens possible consideration of strike action. How many issues
can you count that ASUU settled smoothly through this approach? Yet, ASUU still
does that to draw the attention of the government and other stakeholders for
appropriate and decent actions to be taken.
6. Warning Strike
Because of the bitterness of
strike action, ASUU still doesn't declare indefinite strike, rather it first
goes on a warning strike to further alert the government and the general public that
something bad is brewing in the Ivory tower, thus the need for swift and cogent
actions. Has this method been fruitful?
7. Indefinite Strike Action
As might be noticed in several
ASUU communique, the total indefinite
strike is adopted as the last resort when other options taken failed to yield the required results. Despite ASUU's efforts to shun strike action, government
antics, mischief, infidelity, and treachery forced it to do so indefinitely.
Nonetheless, Nigerians still keep
expecting ASUU as a group of the intelligentsia to perform magic by researching out other maiden approaches.
Yes, there are numerous means but the question of legality and effectiveness
hangs over their heads, thus categorized as:
a) Illegal approach: this entails
bribery and corruption and other illegalities. In Nigeria's system today, this
approach appears to be the most effective but is unlawful with damaging
consequences to individual academics, the union, and the nation. ASUU will never
resort to that.
b) Legal but ineffective approach: this entails peaceful physical
protest (3Ps) and written ones. Given our peculiar real African circumstances,
any protest that is not characterized by disruption, frustration, and truncation
in nature does not prick the nerves of our overpowered and arrogant leadership,
thus peaceful ones appear ineffective whatsoever.
c) Legal, fruitful but
impractical approach: this involves a multistakeholder approach where lecturers,
parents, students, religious, traditional, and regional groups collectively and
objectively pressurize the government to do the right thing. This has never been
practical largely because leaders of most groups don't have what it takes
morally, financially, and educationally to offer the ultimate sacrifices
required in the best interest of our nation. The followers on the other hand
are mostly subjective to regional, political and religious sentiments, thus
lacking objectivity and rational thinking. It is worthy to know that, even from
the viewpoint of experimentation, not all good ideas are searchable, and not all valid research outputs are
implementable especially if one is dealing with the Science-Policy interphase. So,
the question of the paucity of intellectual creativity and novelty is totally not
there.
Now, coming back to the Albert
quote - doing the same thing repeatedly while expecting different results is
insanity. The sense that Nigerians commonly make out of this quote is that ASUU
has been trying strike action over and over to correct some anomalies and
adversities but nothing seemed to have changed at all. This is absolutely
mischievous merchandise by redundant, rusty, and educationally ransacked brains.
It will make more verifiable meaning had it tried to portray slow but steady progress.
Some Fruitful Results from ASUU
Strike Actions
1. TETFUND and Needs Assessment
Project - addressing infrastructural decay
2. Overhaul of salary structure -
addressing brain-drain
3. Nigerian University Pension
Commission (NUPEMCO) - addressing the welfare of staff
4. Various tranches of
revitalization fund - addressing facility upgrade
5. Release of various trenches of
EAA - addressing staff rights
6. Safeguarding university system
autonomy - addressing academic excellence and freedom
7. Existence of Staff school -
addressing staff welfare
8. resistance against privatization and tuition
fee - addressing social service questions for citizens' access to education
irrespective of economic or social status
Let me elaborate further, on the
last one. Most of the emotional commentators in the public domain wouldn't have
gotten the privilege to attend universities but not for the ASUU strike.
The major problem that people see
in ASUU is that ASUU has been very brutal in stating the truth, resolute in
abiding by the truth, and consistent in supporting nothing but the truth.
However, if you still feel there
are more fruitful approaches capable of compelling government to address
existing decay in the university system please as a stakeholder sell the idea
to your group (e.g. NANS, NBA) and let the groups take the credit. Education is
for all, not for ASUU alone!
Finally, those spreading the wrong
notions about ASUU's intellectual integrity should be cautious because it
vividly depicts their mediocrity and moral rottenness. After all, all labor
unions in Nigeria use only strike options to fight for their demands.
Long Live ASUU
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