University Workers’ Strikes and Governments’ Treachery: For a Popular Action

University Workers’ Strikes and Governments’ Treachery: For a Popular Action

If anything is to be deduced from the current face-off between the Yar’Adua government and striking staff unions of tertiary institutions – Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Senior Staff Union (SSANU) and Non-Academic Staff Union (NASU), it is that the ruling class in Nigeria is incurably politically treacherous and intellectually backward. How else will one define a government that set-up a negotiating committee on ASUU demands, which endorsed the final agreement on behalf and with the knowledge of the federal government, only for the same government to have the effrontery to tell Nigerians that it did not have any agreement with ASUU. What then was the committee led by Deacon Gamaliel Onosode doing with the ASUU since 2007? It is funny the same Umaru Yar’Adua who personally promised in 2007 (when faced with massive credibility problem arising from brazenly rigged elections) to resolve ASUU strike headlong, has not come out to utter a word about the workers’ strike. To add insult upon injury, the government is planning to use anti-labour policies to defeat workers. Already the Industrial Arbitration Panel (IAP) is to used to break the ASUU strike and subsequently, SSANU and NASU strikes while some disgruntled students are being sponsored to attack ASUU. Also, government is threatening no-work, no-pay policy. All this anti-worker policies, which are reminiscent of dark darks of military absolutism, must be condemned. This further bring to fore, the need for striking unions to build a mass-based support against government plans. This is why the planned protest march by Education Rights Campaign – radical students’ group campaigning for free and quality education - must be supported.

Unintelligent hypocrisy of the Government

The Minister of Education, Sam Egwu, and the Information Minister, Dora Akunyili claimed some days after ASUU strike started that they had met three demands of ASUU and called on the union to call off its strike. This is a renunciation of a shameful position earlier maintained by the duo that the government did not have agreement with ASUU. Assuming without conceding that the federal government has conceded to three of ASUU demands, why did it take a supposed “responsible” government more than six months after the negotiation ended and more than two weeks of strike before stating this. The reality is that the so-called resolution is only excuse of the government to postpone public opprobrium. Look at the fraud: ASUU demanded that a written rule should be sanctioned by government that will guide regular increase based on standing economic and working conditions, the federal government in response claimed to have increased lecturers’ salaries by 40 percent while governing councils of universities should resolve other issues “in line with the principle of university autonomy (sic)”. This means that the agreement reached earlier has no meaning again. With this, government believed to have caught two birds with a throw – making mockery of the issues of conditions of service and university “autonomy”. Where will governing councils get resources to fund workers’ condition of service? Mr. Sam Egwu, in response to SSANU’s allegation of planned N180, 000 fee super-hikes, claimed that varsities can raise money from services rendered like “consultancy”.

One needs to ask Mr. Egwu how much his university in Ebonyi got from consultancy in the past ten years. That Mr. Egwu (who could not still explain where he got hundred million naira spent on his birthday bash) does not know that over 70 percent of universities’ resources come from government funding while majority of the rest come from extortions from students – exorbitant school fees (already increased averagely by over 500 percents in the past three years), fraudulent pre-varsity programmes (pre-degrees, part-times, remedial, etc.) which lack every element of educational standard, etc is not unexpected. As a result of continuous government irresponsibility in providing functional facilities for tertiary education, there are not even facilities for students’ research cum projects works, not to mention post-graduate research. Where then does the “honourable” minister want the universities to have facilities for consultancy services? Worse still, manufacturing sector has almost collapsed while multinational oil companies (which control the economy) do little or no research in the country. More importantly, Nigerian economy is predicated on the rapacious profit-interest of big business companies and looters in the corridors of power who care less about rapid development of scientific exploitation in the country.

At best, university administrations will collect hand-outs from “well-meaning” fat-cats. Therefore, Mr. Egwu’s response to SSANU is just hiding under a finger, while tacitly justifying SSANU’s claim. Note that Mr. Egwu did not deny that government wants to shift the responsibility of funding workers’ conditions of service on poorly funded and kitted universities. What other way can these universities carry the new burdens than hiking fees and reducing cost (via scrapping of “small” departments; contracting of vital university services; commercialization of studying and living facilities like hostels, workers’ quarters and outright retrenchment of workers). In the cause of implementing these policies, students’ and workers’ democratic rights will have to be trampled upon via proscription of unions (already several students’ unions have been proscribed), victimization of students’ and workers’ activists, etc. This is Mr. Egwu and Yar’Adua’s recipe for resolving university education. This is their definition of university autonomy and answer to staff unions’ agitation for better conditions of service. All of these are shortcut to implementing neo-liberal policies of privatization, commercialization, retrenchment and cut in public spending. Therefore, Yar’Adua government’s plan is to use workers’ demands to further neo-liberal attacks on education.

ASUU, SSANU, NASU demands are genuine

It is worth stating that even if staff unions are fighting for salary increase, it is correct. In fact, workers’ better living is vital to improved service. This is even imperative in a country where a tiny clique of ruling and business class are amassing vast public wealth while every facet of public service that should make living worthwhile for the vast majority including workers are dilapidated. One needs to visit Obafemi Awolowo University to see the challenges faced by non-academic workers. I have seen a messenger (a NASU member) walk down a five storey senate building more than five times a day aside other works he is bound to do. Yet, this person with children in school is paid less than N40, 000 monthly. Therefore, it is only a simpleton that will call workers’ struggle for a better pay selfish.

ASUU and SSANU demands are clear enough. ASUU demands are centred on adequate funding of education by at least 26 percent of budget, genuine autonomy/democratic decision-making in varsities, federal government intervention fund in state universities (as practiced globally), improved facilities in schools and better conditions of service for lecturers. Despite the explicitness of these demands, Nigerian ruling class has found excuses to justify its shameful neglect of education. One of such, according to Mr. Egwu is that federal government cannot alone take decisions on ASUU demands “in the spirit of federalism and rule of law”. This same federalism hardly applies when bogus salaries of politicians are to be inflated. However, when meagre salary cut is to be effected as is currently being done by the Revenue Mobilization, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC), you will see politicians in power use the principle of federalism to avoid its implementation. Nigerian constitution explicitly compels government to provide free and quality education at all levels. Furthermore, the federal government has responsibility to make policies for education in line with constitutional provisions. If federal government is serious, it should budget 26 percent for education, set-up a supervisory committee of democratic representation of staff and student unions in the educational sector and government agencies to formulate policies on the use of this fund and provide free education in all federal educational institutions. From this, a national educational bill can be drafted to enforce this policy national. But Ya’Adua and state governments are unanimous on neo-liberal policies of commercialization, privatization, etc.

I’m sure no level of government will claim there is no money to fund education. A simple calculation tells us that slashing N1.13 trillion annual salaries of all politicians in power by half and spending such on primary and secondary education will build over 500, 000 standard classrooms (with furniture), employ 500, 000 teachers staffs (on a monthly salary of N50, 000) and provide 15 million new spaces (at 25 pupils per class) for young minds currently out of schools. In fact, half of the over N169billion spent on politicians at federal level will mean extra N3.5 billion for each of the 24 federal universities in the country. This is just for a year and only from the salaries of politicians in power. In fact, when all the looted funds (including over $16 billion wasted on power generation, squandered oil wealth e.g. over N555 billion shared by the three tiers of government in May 2008 alone but unaccounted for, among others) are recovered and salaries of politicians are to workers’ level, it can provide adequate resources not only to fund free and globally competitive education, but also fund adequately, free and quality healthcare, secure and gainful employments, cheap and safe mass housing, integrated transport and poor peasant-based, mechanized and environmental-friendly agriculture systems, among others. But who has illusion that a government based on capitalist neo-liberal policies; a government funded by treasury looters (both in business and politics) to do these.

How to fight and win

Having said all this, it is vital to ask if the approach to the struggle by the striking staff unions adequate for the demands they are raising. I have joined others in actively canvassing for collective actions by the staff unions in the education sector in putting massive pressure on government to commit public resources to public education. An arrangement where all unions will have similar demands – proper funding of education, better conditions of service, etc – but will be fighting separately in a country where the ruling class is united in plundering the nation’s wealth, makes no meaning. It only gives the government opportunity to strike a blow to each union. For instance, federal government, in a divide-and-rule manner, having failed to pass neo-liberal policy of education commercialization through ASUU, then sold the idea to SSANU. Therefore, it is vital for the staff unions on strike to immediately convene a joint struggle committee along with other education unions, students’ movement, central labour unions (NLC and TUC), radical civil societies in LASCO, etc to strategize on collective actions to bring government on its knees.

Also, the unions must know that sit-at-home strike only give authorities the opportunity to blackmail the striking unions and isolate them. Consequently, the unions must realize that without organised and coherent mass actions through rallies, protest marches, press campaign, enlightenment (through leaflets and posters), general public will remain “neutral”, which give ample opportunity to government to build support. Also, there are many Nigerians who are dissatisfied with the way the government is running the education sector and will be prepared to join the staff unions in struggle. Despite the effort of LASCO activists in organizing solidarity protest, the lack of coherent participation of the labour movement has hanged the next line of action in the air. In fact, NLC and TUC, despite being a partner in LASCO hardly played any major role in the protest. In fact, the proposal for a 24-hour solidarity strike by NLC in support of striking workers was avoided by the NEC NLC. There is need for series for national mass actions where unions mobilizes their members from each of their branches while students’ organizations also mobilise their members, coupled with independent mobilization by civil society, monthly mass actions can be organised in each region simultaneously. Subsequent actions can be organised at state level every week. With this approach, it will be possible in the shortest period to compel governments to commit public resources to public education. It should be noted any defeat for the striking unions, especially ASUU will affect their image and even morale of their members. Popular mass actions are needed by workers to prevent avoidable defeat.

For a system change

Conclusively, it must be noted that the demands of the tertiary education staff unions – ASUU, SSANU and NASU – cannot be resolved on the long term without a system change. As it has been said earlier, Nigerian ruling class like every of its king in Africa, is deeply rooted in neo-liberal, neo-colonial capitalism and corruption. Every penny spent on public good means less money to loot by the ruling class in power. Of course, if coordinated struggle is organised, the ruling class can be made to concede, but this in itself will raise the political question of the need for independent political party of the working people which will wrestle power from the current set of corrupt capitalist politicians and create a working people’s government committed to the massive development of public infrastructure and the society at large. Such a party will have to put the commanding height of the economy under the democratic control of the working people, through their organizations, if it wants to achieve a real change. We need a party that will demand that public officials should earn average workers’ salary; that children of the political officers should attend public schools and their family members attend public hospitals; a party that will subject public officers to public scrutiny and immediate recall. This is the party that can appeal to the poor who have been disillusioned by corrupt politics.

While public commentators in Nigeria refer to some African country who spend more on education, it is better said that this is not that straight forward. It is true that countries like Ghana, South Africa, Botswana, etc spend huge amount on education, it is worthy of mention that most of these monies do not necessarily go to public need. Otherwise, why are fees in Ghana institutions so expensive? Why are several millions of South Africans uneducated and poor? Why are students in Botswana currently struggling against cancellation of bursary awards? The reality is that ruling classes in these countries were forced by mass struggles (or the fear of it) to give some concessions like increased education funding to the people, but as a result of neo-liberal capitalism, most of the monies, which are not under democratic, are directed towards projects that favour the few rather than the majority. Therefore, despite improved education funding in these countries over Nigeria, the same question confronts the working and poor people across Africa: need for a democratic, mass working people party with a revolutionary, democratic socialist orientation. This is the lesson for labour movement and pro-masses organizations in Nigeria, Africa and the world.

Kola Ibrahim (kmarx4live@yahoo.com, 08059399178)

Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Nigeria.

P.O.Box 1319, GPO, Enuwa, Ile-Ife