I Did Not Call ASUU Members Thieves -Opiah, Minister Of State, Education

By Gideon Njoku

The Minister for State, Education, Goodluck Opiah, has denied ever referring to the members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, as thieves. He said he never called them by that derogatory name, and never compared them to thieves.

The Minister was quoted as saying, while on a working visit to the Federal University, Lokoja, FUL, on Friday, September 3, 2022, that “only thieves demand for the money they didn’t work for.”

The Minister was apparently speaking on the strike action by ASUU members which has kept University students at home for five months and counting. ASUU had declared the strike over the welfare of its members and the state of Universities in the Country. All appeals to the Union to call off the strike, especially, in the interest of students have fallen on deaf ears, and rebuffed. And every negotiation with the Federal Government has fallen through.

In frustration, the Federal Government recently invoked the “no work, no pay”, rule. That has infuriated ASUU the more.

However, not a few Nigerians are in support that ASUU members should not be paid for not working, and they probably agree that only thieves demand for money they did not work for.

But the Minister, in a statement signed behalf by his Special Adviser on New Media, Collins Ughalaa, said he never said anything like that, and  dismissed what he called a “one-sentence narrative” as mischief “meant to widen the gulf between ASUU and the Federal Government.”

Opiah, also, revealed to Nigerians and the University  Community that the Federal Government has met all ASUU demands, and appealed to the Union to reciprocate by calling off the strike. The only issue remaining, Opiah explained, is the “no work no pay” rule which the FG recently invoked.

Following is the full text of the Minister’s statement.

RE: ONLY THIEVES DEMAND MONEY THEY DIDN’T WORK FOR – EDUCATION MINISTER, OPIAH SLAMS ASUU

“The attention of the Honourable Minsiter of State for Education, Rt. Hon. Goodluck Nanah Opiah, has been drawn to a spurious story in the social media where he was misquoted to be  have slammed the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) over their industrial action that has grounded acadmic activities in Nigeria’s public Universities.

“The mischievous report misquoted the Minister to have said, during his working visit to the Federal University, Lokoja (FUL), on Friday, that “It is only a thief that goes to eat where he didn’t work”.

“The one-sentence statement was obviously inserted into the narrative to create mischief and widen the gulf between the striking university lecturers and the Federal Government, especially the Federal Ministry of Education, which has been making frantic efforts to see that the strike comes to end and our children go back to school. The Minister did not say so, and could not have derided the university lecturers who are men of honour, and should in no way be likened to dishonourable people in the society.

“For the records, the Minister had during his working visit to the Federal University of Lokoja, drew attention to the harmful effect of the lingering strike by ASUU. He used the occasion of the working visit to intimate the university community of the efforts made the Federal Government towards resolving the lingering ASUU strike.

“Consequently, he informed the university community and Nigerians at large, that the Federal Government had met all the demands made by ASUU and called on ASUU to reciprocate by calling off the strike.

“The Minister also said that the Federal Government has done so much in developing infrastructure in public universities and had spent well over N2.5Trl through the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETfund), a feat not achieved by previous administrations. He added that such gestures which on their own exceeded ASUU demand should ordinarily make ASUU call off its strike.

“Furthermore, the Minister said that the only issue on the table at the moment is the “No Work No Pay” rule which the Federal Government evoked recently, in keeping with the Trade Disputes Act.

“For emphasis, section 43 of the Trade Disputes Act says that when a worker goes on strike, the employer can also refuse to pay him for the period of time he was on stike. That is what is commonly referred to as the ‘No Work, No Pay Rule’.

“The Minister of State for Education therefore calls on ASUU and Nigerians at large to disregard the report as it is a figment of the imagination of the author and did not emanate from the Minister.”