Flights and banking operations across the country could be disrupted in the coming days as unions in the aviation and banking industry threaten to strike alongside the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
The Association of Nigeria Aviation Professionals (ANAP) and the National Union of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institutions Employees (NUBIFIE) in separate statements made their intention known on Monday.
They criticised the Federal Government for the prolonged ASUU strike and refusal to honour the Memorandum of Understanding signed with the University union. The strike has extended into four months.
ANAP general secretary, Abdulrasaq Saidu, said in a statement that students are spending eight years in University for courses of four years, and warned that the union would join the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) in its solidarity protest with ASUU.
Recall that the labour congress announced its plan to hold a nationwide protest on July 26 and 27, in support of ASUU, “we have scheduled as follows the National Days of Protest to get our children back to school and support our unions in Nigeria’s public universities fighting for quality education.” NLC said.
Saidu said, “ASUU, NASU, SAUTHRIAI, NAAT had been on strike for more than four months due to the apparent failure of government to sign the re-negotiated 2009 Agreement with ASUU, failure to honour the terms reached at in May 2022 MoU signed with ASUU, and habitual failure of government to respect Collective Bargaining Agreements willingly signed with labour Unions”.
He added that, “Our children are using eight years to read courses of four years with resources being wasted. We cannot continue this way.”
NUBIFIE in its statement, said its members in the banking industry, insurance and other financial institutions will join the strike if the one-day protest by NLC doesn’t yield positive result.
“However, if after the one-day protest by NLC on this issue and nothing is done, the union will have no other option than to call out all our members in banks, insurance and other financial institutions in solidarity with ASUU.” The union’s general secretary, Mohammed Sheikh, said in a report by NAN.
