Senator Mohammed Ali Ndume has called on the Federal government to slash the salaries of members of the National Assembly by 50 percent and then allocate money generated from the slash to address the pressing demands of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
Ndume who represents Borno South senatorial district made the call in Maiduguri, Borno State capital on Friday, November 11, while reacting to the October half salary payment to the University teachers by the federal government.
He advised the federal government to constitute a high-powered standing committee of respected educationists and patriotic Nigerians to meet with the ASUU leadership to address the lingering burning issues.
“Even if it means that the National Assembly will reduce sitting allowances or be paid on casual allowances basis whenever they sit at the Lower and Upper Chambers, by cutting the recurrent expenditure in the budget of the federal lawmakers to settle the ASUU arrears, let it be. It will be in the overall national interest of Nigerians.
Civil servants worked from home during the COVID-19 pandemic and were paid their full salaries and allowances monthly. So, why will the federal government cut university lecturers’ salaries because they went on legitimate strike action in which, constitutionally, they are fighting for their rights and privileges?
