The meeting between the Federal Government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), on Wednesday, ended in a stalemate.
The conciliatory meeting, which was held at the headquarters of the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment in Abuja, lasted for eight hours and was, however, adjourned till Monday next week for further deliberations, Leadership reports.
Speaking to journalists at the end of the meeting, Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige, said that among the eight issues brought on the table of negotiation, some level of understanding was reached in four areas of ASUU’s demands.
On the University Transparency and Accountability System (UTAS), a payment platform developed by ASUU to replace IPPIS, Dr Ngige explained that a joint technical committee will be set up to test-run and resolve any grey areas around the new platform.
However, on the issue of the University Revitalization Fund, the minister insisted that discussions around the area require the input of the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning before a concrete decision would be taken.
Though ASUU national president, Professor Emmanuel Osodeke, declined comment at the end of the meeting, he earlier said that the federal government had failed to convene the regular implementation monitoring meeting as agreed upon.
Earlier, at the opening session of the meeting, ASUU insisted that no ground would be shifted until their demands are met.
