TheCable

The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), south-west zone, has threatened to shut down airports if the federal government fails to resolve the strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).

According to NAN, Adegboye Olatunji, NANS’ coordinator for south-west, spoke on Monday in Abuja.

ASUU has been on strike since February 14 due to several unresolved issues — one of which is the union’s insistence on making use of the University Transparency and Accountability Solution (UTAS) as a preferred payment option, instead of the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS).

With tertiary institutions closed for months, students across the country have repeatedly taken to the streets to protest the protracted industrial action.

Disclosing NANS’ new tactics to get the government’s attention, Olatunji said the association is ready to “block government organisations that generate money”.

He added that a blockade on airports will spur the government “do something about the strike”.

“We are planning to block government organisations that generate money for them if the ASUU issue is not resolved,” he said.

“We have been protesting on this issue by occupying major roads in the South West, but we believe if we ground airports, the government will do something about the strike.”