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I Will Not Give ASUU Opportunity To Go On Strike – Says Ngige

Chris Ngige, the Minister of Labour and Employment, has said that he will do everything to ensure that the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) does not go on another industrial action.

He explained that three of his biological children have also been victims of the system, so he is personally committed to resolving the issues.

“I will not give ASUU the opportunity to go on strike. Because I have three biological children that suffered from this imbroglio that we found ourselves in and about 15 people on my scholarship in Nigerian Universities,” the Minister said on Channels TV’s Politics Today on Wednesday.

“My three biological children are here in Nigerian Universities. They even went to secondary school here. Two of them are American citizens and I had the option of leaving them to go study in America and enjoy the free education or whatever, but I didn’t. So, I am a committed parent. I am involved, even more than some ASUU members because some of them have their children in private schools.”

Ngige said this hours after the Academic Staff Union of University (ASUU) “conditionally” suspended its strike, ending a protracted industrial action that started in March.

National President of the association, Biodun Ogunyemi made the announcement during a briefing of the union in Abuja on Wednesday.

Ogunyemi explained that the development followed the agreement reached with the Federal Government and a meeting with its National Executive Council (NEC).

The suspension of the strike takes effect from Thursday, December 24.

Meanwhile, the union has stressed that it will not hesitate to commence another strike if the government does not keep to its end of the bargain.

But Ngige has vowed to do everything possible to ensure that does not happen.

“I will make sure the government does its own bit,” he said.

He gave an assurance that the agreement reached is so structured “in such a way that it is a win-win situation for everybody.”

“For the revitalisation, we have given government up to the 31^st of January to pay that. We have also opened the window so that by the end of February, we will sit down again and review all these situations. Nobody is going to keep anybody in suspense.”