Nigeria’s Minister of Labour and Employment, Sen. Chris Ngige, has unveiled plans to hijack planned “EndASUU protest to destroy public and private property or lecturers homes,” insisting that organisers of the protest “will be disappointed.”
The Nigerian Government, Ngige insisted, would disappoint all those who were waiting to embark on an EndASUU protest by mid January 2021, should government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), fail to arrive at a compromise.
Ngige, who spoke on Tuesday shortly before stepping into a closed door meeting with the leadership of ASUU in Abuja, took the position following an ultimatum purportedly issued by Nigerian students to embark on a protest on January 15 if the issues were not addressed.
Ngige, who confirmed his earlier optimism that the prolonged strike would soon come to an end, said he was yet to receive such a letter from the students, adding that even if there was one, the government would disappoint all those wishing for the protest as all the matters in dispute must have been resolved by January 15.
He said: “Those who want to use the EndASUU protest to destroy public and private property or lecturers homes, will be disappointed.
“I am optimistic that the meeting will produce the final result that will make everybody happy.
“This meeting will be fruitful, just like the past ones. This is a journey and the facts are that we have achieved a lot, on both sides, the government and ASUU. This journey has been tortuous, but I see light at the end of the tunnel.”
Ngige further noted that he has already communicated with the government side before the meeting and had gotten the assurances that most of the grey areas have been dealt with.
