TheCable

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has kicked against the requirement that public tertiary institutions remit 40 percent of their internally generated revenues (IGR) to the federal government.

The federal government had said it is set to implement a 40 percent automatic deduction from the IGR of federal universities and other partially-funded institutions.

Following its national executive council (NEC) meeting on Monday, ASUU in a statement signed by Emmanuel Osodeke, its president, said the decision would impoverish already struggling public universities.

The union said public universities are not revenue-generating agencies with substantial funds to remit IGR to the federal coffers.

“NEC reviewed the implications of the recent directive to Federal Universities to remit forty percent (40%) of their Internally Generated Funds (IGF) to the coffers of government,” the union said.

“NEC condemns the directive in its entirety because it would further impoverish and emasculate the Nigeria university system.

“For the avoidance of doubt, universities are not revenue generating agencies because the obligatory fees paid by students are to provide the necessary tools for them to be properly educated.”

ASUU’s NEC called on the relevant institutions of state to remove universities from the category of government agencies required to remit IGR, in the interest of affordability and accessibility of education in the country.

ASUU also condemned the recent attack on Joe Ajaero, president of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), in Imo state.

On October 30, the NLC threatened to ground activities in Imo from November 1 to protest the alleged violation and abuse of rights and privileges of workers.

Ajaero had alleged that the Imo government had not paid some workers for 20 months.

He was later picked up by security operatives in Owerri but the NLC claimed that he was blindfolded and beaten up following his release from custody.

ASUU said it would resist any attempt to paint legitimate demands of workers in Imo as partisan.

“NEC demands that the perpetrators of this dastardly act should be fished out and punished in line with the provisions of the law,” the union added.