In the face of the ongoing face-off between university lecturers and the federal government of Nigeria, the Congress of Nigerian Universities Academics (CONUA) which was newly registered University-based union, has said that its members were not on strike and are ready to teach students if they are back to class.
Its national coordinator of the union, Niyi Sunmonu made this known during an interview on Channels TV’s morning show, Sunrise Daily which was monitored by Africa Today News, New York.
It would be recalled that the federal government had on Tuesday formally registered two new university unions, the CONUA and National Association of Medical and Dental Academics (NAMDA).
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The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has been on strike since February 14, 2022 with several efforts to get the lecturers back to classroom being deadlocked.
Sunmonu said, ‘CONUA as an organization has not been on strike; there has been no time strike was declared. Well ASUU is an independent union and what it does has no bearing over other unions just like two different human beings. We have not been on strike and we are not on strike.
‘We stopped teaching when students were asked to vacate campuses. We hope university will open and we can go back to teaching. The formation of CONUA is not on the basis of strike action declared by our sister union (ASUU). We have not been on strike, we are ready work if students are back on campuses.’
Africa Todya News, New York had earlier reported that in a bid to weaken the influence of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), the Federal Government of Nigeria, on Tuesday, registered two unions in the university system.
The unions are the National Association of Medical and Dental Academics and the Congress of Nigerian University Academics.
The Minister of Labour and Productivity, Chris Ngige, made this known while speaking during the presentation of the certificates of registration to the two unions explained that the two bodies will exist alongside ASUU.