The Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, reasserts his commitment to bring an end to the 8-month long strike by members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities and its impasse with the Federal Government. The Minister stated that he has three of his own biological children in public universities here in Nigeria and so he is also an affected stakeholder. 
He slammed the rumours that government officials have been foot-draggers at the ongoing negotiations with the university lecturers because they have no stake in the Nigerian educational system as most of their own wards are abroad studying.
Chris Ngige said, “I have three biological children in public schools. They are in public schools; they are not in private universities. Unlike ASUU members who have most of their children in private universities, three of mine are here. So, I am a very big stakeholder in the public tertiary school system.”
The Minister for Labour and Employment said this while he was on Arise TV, “So, when ASUU says politicians don’t care because they have taken their children abroad, Chris Ngige cares because my children are not abroad even though they have dual nationality – two of them have American citizenship; they can be in America but I choose them to be here with me.
“So, ASUU cannot accuse me of not being nationalistic enough. Anything that will help the university system here, I am in the forefront.”
It was reported last Friday that the Federal Government accepted the demand by ASUU that the lecturers be exempted from the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System.
The government also offered to increase the Earned Allowances to university staff from N30 billion to N35b and the Revitalisation Fund from N20b to N25b.
Photo Credit: Getty
