Indications emerged yesterday that the Federal Government may consider the option of proscribing the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU if it fails to call off the prolonged strike after an offer was made to it.

The Federal Government has also approved an additional N100 billion for the university sector as part of the understanding in the re-negotiation of the 2009 Agreement.

Besides, N50 billion was equally approved to be shared by the university-based unions as earned allowances.

The four university-based unions that have been agitating for the payment of earned allowances are ASUU, which calls its own Earned Academic Allowances, the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, SSANU, the Non-Academic Union of Education and Associated Institutions, NASU, and the National Association of Academic Technologists, NAAT.

Recall that ASUU embarked on a month warning strike on February 14, 2022 and has been rolling over the strike till date, while the other three unions, starting with NAAT, downed tools in March.

Among the contentious issues are the non-release of revitalization funds, earned allowances, problems associated with payment of salaries through the use of Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System, IPPIS and the re-negotiation of the 2009 Agreement.

While ASUU has insisted that its members should be paid through its preferred platform, the University Transparency and Accountability Solution, UTAS, the non-teaching staff, especially SSANU and NASU, have designed their own payment platform, the University Peculiar Personnel and Payroll System, U3PS.

All the the three platforms have been submitted to the government through the National Information Technology Development Agency, NITDA, which has subjected them to integrity tests.