A former President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi says fresh industrial action by lecturers of public universities is inevitable in 2023.
Ogunyemi made this known on Saturday during a live appearance on Channels TV’s 2022 In Retrospect, an End-Of-Year special.
The academic labelled the Federal Government as insensitive to the plights of lecturers and noted that it is against justice that people who have been made to work in arrears should not be paid in arrears.
ASUU embarked on strike in February 2022 over demands for improved welfare, and owed earned allowances, amongst others.
However, the union was forced to abort its strike by a judgement of the National Industrial Court by mid October after eight months.
The Federal Government paid the lecturers half salaries at the end of October, activating its no-work, no-pay policy.
This caused an outrage as the union condemned what it called the casualisation of lecturers but the government did not rescind its decision.
Ogunyemi, who handed over to the current ASUU president, Emmanuel Osodeke in May 2021, berated the Federal Government for its pro rata payment method, saying no ASUU leader can guarantee that the union won’t embark on fresh strike in 2023.
According to him, if the government is withholding arrears of their salaries, things may get to a head where our members will insist that their salaries be paid.