Why We Can’t Meet ASUU’s N284bn Demand Now–Federal Government

Ngige

The Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr. Chris Ngige, said this while answering questions from State House correspondents at the end of a meeting of the Federal Executive Council presided over by Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

Ngige said there was no way the government could pay the allowance because there was no money.

The minister said the government had conceded to the union the right to exclude endowment funds that accrued to universities from the Treasury Single Account.

He said while the government agreed to ASUU’s demand to exclude endowment funds from the TSA, that did not mean that universities’ councils would not have right to audit such an account.

Ngige added, “The other aspect of it is the earned allowance. The earned allowance is the only one that is not sorted out now because everybody knows and agrees that we are in a recession.

“If we are in a recession and you are asking us to pay you N284bn, nobody will pay it because the money is not there.