Parents Should Beg ASUU To End Strike, FG Can’t Borrow To Pay Them – Festus Keyamo

The Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo said that the federal government would not borrow to resolve the ongoing strike action by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).

Keyamo Speaks On ASUU Strike

KanyiDaily recalls that ASUU had embarked on a warning strike since February 14, over the failure of the federal government to meet its demands.

Amid the strike, the government and the union have held a series of meetings, but both sides have reached no agreement on ending the strike.

Speaking on Friday night when he was featured on Channels Television, Keyamo said that the government had done enough to appease the striking university lecturers.

He urged Nigerian parents whose children are affected by the ongoing industrial action by the government-owned universities to appeal to the ASUU to call off the lingering strike.

The minister said the government will not allow itself to be dragged into another burden of borrowings in the name of trying to pay members of the striking union.

Keyamo said, “Should we go and borrow to pay N1.2 trillion yearly?

“You cannot allow one sector of the economy to hold you by the jugular and then blackmail you to go and borrow N1.2 trillion for overheads when our total income would be about N6.1 trillion. And you have roads to build, health centres to build, other sectors to take care of.”

“Like the President said the other time, those who know them, appeal to their sense of patriotism. Let them go back to classes.

“They are not the only one in Nigeria. They are not the only ones feeding from the federal purse. The nation cannot grind to a halt because we want to take care of the demands of ASUU.”

KanyiDaily recalls that last week, ASUU extended the ongoing strike by four weeks to give the federal government enough time to resolve all outstanding issues with the lecturers.