The Presidency said on Monday it was no longer
interested in the December 9 deadline it handed
over to the striking university teachers to return
to work.
Rather, it said it was satisfied with the lecturers’
level of compliance with the directive to them to
resume work or be sacked.
The Senior Special Assistant to President Goodluck
Jonathan on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe, said
this while briefing journalists on the payment of the
N200bn by the Federal Government into the
“Revitalisation of Universities Infrastructure”
account with the Central Bank of Nigeria.
Okupe’s claim of “substantial compliance” was
however described as total falsehood by the
Academic Staff Union of Universities leadership,
which also said it would not attend a meeting on
Wednesday(today) with the Supervising Minister of
Education, Mr. Nyesom Wike, and vice-chancellors
on the University Needs Assessment Report
Implementation Committee.
Okupe had told journalists that the Federal
Government was soft pedalling on the threat to
sack the defiant ASUU members because many
senior citizens and institutions had intervened.
He said that as of Sunday evening, government had
reports that there was substantial compliance by
many lecturers with the directive.
The Presidential aide added that the development
encouraged the government to mellow down on
its earlier tough stance.
He cited the University of Lagos as an example
of a public university where in the Faculties of
Law, Arts and Science, out of 100 lecturers, “
between 60 and 70 signed up to resume work.”
The trend, according to him, was replicated in
“virtually all the universities in the country,
including the Obafemi Awolowo University and
University of Ibadan.”
Okupe said, “The ultimatum is not a matter for
discussion anymore. I told you, there has been
substantial compliance nationwide. If I say you
must return to work on the 9th and 70 per cent of
the people that I am talking to have returned to
work, that is substantial compliance.
“What becomes of the remaining 30 per cent who
did not return to work, these are issues that we do
not want to stop the wheel of progress in sorting
out this resolution. We are not interested in a
witch-hunt; we are more interested in compliance
and in the resolution of the crisis.
“Many senior Nigerians, institutions and
organisations, including labour unions such as the
Nigerian Labour Congress and the Trade Union
Congress, as well as royal fathers have
intervened and have pleaded with the government
to soft pedal on the issue of ultimatum.”
Asked if the government was serious about the
ultimatum in the first place, he replied “Yes.”
Okupe explained that the government was
forced to issue the ultimatum because every other
avenue to end the strike had been explored to no
avail.
 He said, “I said it before that governments
worldwide, when pushed to the wall take steps
that may be draconian but sometimes, they have to
be taken in order to protect the citizens and the
states they govern.”
The Presidential aide accused the media of
presenting the strike as if the Federal
Government and ASUU were in a face-off.
He said, “There is no face-off between the
government and ASUU.
“ASUU may be grandstanding but the government
is more interested in the resolution than in any
form of confrontation with any union whatsoever.
“Our interest is to ensure good governance,
orderliness and peaceful coexistence nationwide
and among all sectors of the economy and that
education is not left behind.”
While giving further evidence that the N200bn had
been paid, Okupe released a copy of the letter
written by the Deputy Governor of CBN, Mr. Tunde
Lemo, to the Accountant General of the Federation,
to journalists.
The letter, with reference GVD/DGO/GEN/
MPA/05/151 and dated December 10, 2013, reads
in part, “Confirmation of the execution of your
mandates for the credit of account No:
00200xx522, Revitalisation of Universities
Infrastructure Account.
“I write to confirm the execution of the following
mandates by the CBN for funding of the above
mentioned account as follows:
1. Mandate FDL/LP201340/1/30/DF:
N129,300,000,000:00
2. Mandate FD/FA/124/Vol X11/120/1DF:
N20,700,000,000:00
3. Mandate FD/LP2013/40/1/
DF :N50,000,000,000:00
“I wish to further confirm that the available
balance in the aforementioned account is N200bn
(two hundred billion naira) only.
“Please accept the assurances of my best
regards.”
With this, Okupe said there was no need for the
continuation of the strike.
He said the President of ASUU, Dr. Nasir Fagge,
had assured last Thursday that if there was proof
of payment of the sum, the strike would be called
off immediately.
 Okupe said, “I hereby show the proof of payment
to all Nigerians, not only to ASUU and to let the
people know that when we say that this
administration has no credibility issue, we mean it.
“We have kept our cool; we have taken a lot of
insults and all that and things that were disparaging
but we are glad to show this proof that this has
been done as we said.”