Thursday Briefing: ASUU's Warning, Free Vaccines and an Ethiopian Massacre
What you need to know.
Good morning.
I am writing about the aftermath of ASUU’s strike, free vaccines for Nigerians and a carnage in western Ethiopia.
After ending its strike what next for ASUU?
To the relief of scores of Nigerian students, the Academic Staff Union of Universities on Wednesday called off its nine-month-long strike, but the storm is far from over. The academics are already threatening to resume its strike action by February if the federal government fails to fulfil its promises.
Promises: According to ASUU, the federal government has pledged to release N30bn to the union before the end of the month, for the revitalisation of universities. A new salary structure for university lecturers, the University Transparency and Accountability Solution (UTAS), is also underway.
Other ASUU demands include the setting up of visitation panels for universities and the payment of earned academic allowances.
Quote: “The time frame (for implementation) is a bit elastic. There are some items that are supposed to be addressed in January, there are some others that will drag till March or thereabouts,” ASUU President, Professor Biodun Ogunyemi said. “This time around, we have agreed to review the status of the implementation by February. That is our mechanism for monitoring. This was not there in some of our previous agreements.”
Ngige: The Labour Minister, who spearheaded the federal government negotiation team with ASUU, says he will ensure the government does not renege on any of its promises and avert another strike. “My three biological children are here in Nigerian Universities; they even went to secondary school here,” he says. “So, I am a committed parent. I am involved, even more than some ASUU members because some of them have their children in private schools.”
Conflict of interest: University non-academic unions are now threatening to embark on their own strikes if the federal government does not extend ASUU privileges to its members, especially as it concerns the sharing formula for earned allowances.
Quote: “No union, not even ASUU, has the monopoly of opening or closing of schools through strikes; other unions also have that capacity to ensure that the system does not work,” says the National President of the National Association of Academic Technologists, Ibeji Nwokomma.
Free vaccines, but not for everybody
The Presidential Task Force has said at least 20 per cent of Nigerians will have access to free Covid vaccines, which will be provided in partnership with the Geneva-based vaccine alliance, Gavi. But there are no details yet on who will benefit or how to qualify. “A lot of work is going on behind the scene,” says Sani Aliyu, the PTF National Coordinator. “The biggest challenge we will have with the vaccine is not going to be the logistics, the biggest challenge will be the public acceptance of the safety of the vaccines and allowing themselves to be vaccinated.”
NCDC: An additional 1,122 new cases and five deaths were confirmed in the country, the health agency said on Wednesday.
Kogi: Despite surging cases across the country, the middle-belt state is yet to report a single infection or death in about five months.
Second wave: More states have tightened restrictions ahead of the festive season. In Ondo, the government cancelled cross-over services in churches across the state.
Related: The UK has imposed travel restrictions on South Africa after linking two cases of another new Covid variant to the country.
A carnage in Ethiopia
At least 100 people were killed by unknown attackers in a village in western Ethiopia on Wednesday. Some of the victims were shot, while others were stabbed, according to a nurse who spoke to the BBC. The attack was carried out a day after Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed visited the Benishangul-Gumuz region where the village is located.
“The desire by enemies to divide Ethiopia along ethnic & religious lines still exists,” Ahmed wrote on Twitter after his visit. “This desire will remain unfulfilled.”
Benishangul-Gumuz has witnessed at least four deadly attacks since September, including a gun attack on a passenger bus in November that killed 34 people.
Related: In another Ethiopian region, Tigray, fighting between federal forces and a regional army has gone on for weeks, displacing tens of thousands. According to the United Nations, hundreds of civilians have been killed in the conflict.
What else is happening?
Cement: Low production volume by major production companies in Nigeria appears to have driven prices up by up to 35 per cent.
Buhari: The Presidency says there is a sinister plot to paint the President in a bad light.
Kaduna: At least 12 people have been confirmed dead in an accident involving a trailer on the Kaduna-Abuja highway.
Kwara: At least six people have died after a petrol tanker exploded in Jebba.
Katsina: The Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu has vowed the police will not allow a repeat of the Kankara abduction.
NIMC: After reports emerged that data of Nigerians were being sold on the dark web, the national identity agency said on Wednesday that its systems have not been breached and that citizen’ information is safe in its custody.
Trump: The US President has pardoned more of his allies as he prepares to exit the White House.
And that’s it for today. See you on Christmas Day. Happy holidays.