The federal government on Monday said it did
not have the financial power now to meet the demands of the Academy Staff Union
of Universities (ASUU).
The minister of education, Adamu Adamu,
disclosed this while addressing journalist in Abuja. He said the crash in the
prices of oil globally has affected the economic fortunes of Nigeria.
This, he explained, had dire consequences on
all sectors of the economy, including education.
The government also accused the administration
of late president, Umaru Yar’Adua, of making bogus promises to the union during
a period of oil boom.
“Let me begin by saying that the issues
necessitating this strike dates back to 2009 when the then government of late
President Umaru Musa Yar Adua signed an agreement with the ASUU on funding of
the federal universities in the country,” he said.
According to the education minister, the
agreement provided for funding of universities to the tune of N1.3 trillion
over a period of six years. It is instructive to know that Nigeria was
experiencing the oil boom at that time. It was therefore expected that
government will be able to meet the terms of agreement.
“However, international oil prices crashed in
subsequent years thereby throwing the country into economic hardship. At the
inception of this administration, the country’s economic fortunes worsened,
nose diving into recession, with dire consequences on all sectors of the
economy, including education,” he said.
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