Former President Goodluck Jonathan described how his administration ended the Academic Staff Union of Universities’ (ASUU) four-month strike in a single day.
At the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese Matthew Hassan Kukah’s 70th birthday celebration, which was hosted by The Kukah Center on Wednesday in Abuja, he made this statement.
According to the Daily Trust, university professors have been on strike since February due to an impasse with the Federal Government.
“The society we are managing is complex. Right now, the ASUU strike is being discussed, but the ASUU also went on strike for four months during my tenure, and despite many meetings by various committees, nothing got done. I questioned how our kids could miss four months of school. I had to convene a meeting of the whole ASUU leadership as a result.
“I chaired the meeting with my vice president, the Attorney General was present, and I said that we needed to resolve the issue that evening. Everyone who has anything to do with it was present, including the Attorney General, the Second to the Government of the Federation, the ministers of education, labour, and finance.
“And I believed that having me there would facilitate getting things done quickly. However, we worked through the night until about 5:30 in the morning. There were problems before we came to an end and the strike was called off,” stated Jonathan.
Despite his affinity with leaders, he observed that Bishop Kukah would criticise them when he felt they were not doing appropriately, including himself.
