The Federal Government has assured the public that the dispute it is now having with university-based unions will soon be settled, allowing academic activities to pick back up in full.
The guarantee was provided on Wednesday by Minister of Labor and Employment Chris Ngige, who also denied proposing a different payment structure for all trade unions in higher institutions.
The National Information Development Agency (NITDA) is among the agencies that the government has called to account for the progress made so far in resolving the controversial issues that sparked the four university-based unions’ ongoing strike.
Insisting that the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) was failing to adequately represent its members, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) developed the University Transparency and Accountability Solution (UTAS).
However, the Federal Government, in March, said UTAS had failed three integrity tests.
The Universities Peculiar Personnel Payroll System (UPPPS) was proposed as a payment platform by the Non-Academic Staff Union of Allied and Educational Institutions (NASU) and the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU).
At the conclusion of the weekly Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari, Ngige informed reporters that efforts were being made to put an end to the protracted universities’ industrial activities.
According to Ngige, government was interested in seeing the youngsters going back to school.
The University Transparency and Accountability System, UTAS, which was presented by ASUU as an alternative platform, and the University Peculiar Personnel and Payroll System, U3PS, proposed by SSANU and NASU, would both be discussed at the meeting on Thursday, according to him.
Ngige stated that he was anticipating the findings of the Tripartite Plus Committee, which included representatives from the Ministry of Education, the Chief of Staff, the Salaries and Wages Income Commission, the National University Commission, NUC, and the striking unions.
He claimed that despite claims to the contrary, there have been meetings between all sides, with the next one scheduled for Thursday.
