The Colleges of Education Academic Staff Union (COEASU), on Thursday, announced the suspension of its seven-month-old strike, effective from next week Monday.
The strike will be suspended for three months, within which the Federal Government is expected to fulfill the demands of the union.
President of the union, Mr Emmanuel Asagha, said the union decided to give the government three months to enable it meet up with its demands, following the intervention of the Minister of Education, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau.
He added that the lecturers would return back to trenches should the government renege on its promise.
Speaking after a closed door meeting with the two Ministers of Education, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau and Mr Nyesom Wike in Abuja, the COEASU boss said “we want to give the new minister the benefit of doubt, as he mentioned God a number of times while pledging his commitment to us and we believe he is committed to resolving the remaining issues.”
Asagha said all striking lecturers will be directed to resume work effective from next week Monday.
It will be recalled that the chairman, Committee of Council Chairmen of Federal Colleges of Education, Senator Emmanuel Anosike, on Tuesday, held the truce meeting with the COEASU at the National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE) as the lecturers met to review the strike.
All the stakeholders at the meeting later agreed that the ongoing industrial action by the union had been prolonged.
The COEASU leadership and all other unions in the sector present at the meeting called at the instance of the minister, said government had met a reasonable number of the union’s demands and it appears determined to address the unresolved issues, hence the need to suspend the strike.
The union agreed to call off the strike in principle, subject to the following: That there shall be no victimisation on the basis of the strike; salaries so withheld be released in bulk; circular on the implementation should be released, while asking the government to set up a technical committee to look into other pending issues.
It will also be recalled that the COEASU embarked on the indefinite strike over grievances relating to government’s failure to release the white paper of visitation panel it undertook two years ago, among many other contending issues.
Earlier, Shekarau assured that issues raised by the union, which included salary harmonisation under CONTISS structure, as well as disparity in the civil service system, especially between degree programmes and other technical- based degrees would all be taken care of.
