FG, Senate, ASUU Meet Over IPPIS, UTAS

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A Federal Government delegation on Tuesday met with the leadership of the Senate and Academic Staff Union of University (ASUU) over the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) and lingering strike action by members of the union.

The government’s delegation, which was led by the Minister of Labour and Productivity, Chris Ngige, includes: the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu and the Accountant General of the Federation, Ahmed Idris.

The ASUU team was led by its National President, Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi.

The Labour minister, who spoke with the media at the end of the closed-door meeting, said the Federal Government would study the payment option proposed by ASUU, the University Transparency and Accountability Solution (UTAS).

“ASUU has demonstrated to us, how the UTAS they developed could work but the demonstration will continue tomorrow.

“We will involve other government agencies who would also come and assess it. Discussions on it is not foreclosed yet.

“UTAS is a homegrown software. It is what we call local content that Mr. President is encouraging. It will be considered by the government

“We told ourselves some home truth. We were all frank with the discussion. It is a bilateral plus discussion in labour parlance.

“We will continue the meeting in the Ministry of Labour on Thursday and reconvene again on Tuesday and Wednesday next week,” Ngige added.

Ahmed Lawan

ASUU had rejected the implementation of IPPIS as it embarked on an indefinite strike last February.

The face-off between ASUU and FG heightened in the wake of the pronouncement by the President Muhammadu Buhari directing stoppage of salaries of civil servants not unrolled on IPPIS.

The Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, who convened and presided over the meeting, said the current impasse between ASUU and the Federal Government was an ill-wind that would not do any of the two parties any good.

The Senate President asked the two parties to find a middle ground to resolve the crisis over the payment option.

“It has to be a win-win situation,” Lawan added.

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