The striking lecturers accused Ngige of misleading the public about the true issues regarding the lingering strike.
The Academic Staff Union of Universities, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto (ASUU UDUS) Branch has lambasted the Nigerian Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr. Chris Ngige for claiming the university college of health science has abandoned the five months old strike embarked upon by public university lecturers nationwide.
The striking lecturers accused Ngige of misleading the public about the true issues regarding the lingering strike.
In a statement jointly signed by the chapter’s chairperson, M. N. Almustapha and the secretary, S. A. Sadiku, appealed to the Nigerian Government to take necessary action and caution Ngige before his misrepresentation of issues further plunge the country into a serious crisis.
The statement reads: "The attention of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto (ASUU UDUS) Branch has been drawn to an interview granted to Arise TV by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr. Chris Ngige on the 14th of July, 2022.
“In the said interview, he characteristically (as always) misinformed and disinformed Nigerians about the actual state of the ASUU-FGN reconciliation efforts. In part of his remarks, Dr. Ngige pitiably and shamefully stated, in quote ‘Medical lecturers are at work, they are teaching. Sokoto has graduated their medical students, they are reasonable people, they have tested the strike, and saw that it produces no result, yes they did it the last time. So, today, they have written, their Vice Chancellor has approved that they are at work. The labour Controllers in those states have also confirmed that they are at work and I have advised the Finance Minister and they are processing their payments’.
"This is to categorically and unequivocally inform the public and those concerned that these are all in the imagination of the Minister. This intentional misinformation and treachery, against the sensibility of Nigerians is already known to many as the characteristics of Dr. Ngige. His manner of narrative during the interview depicts his inhumane nature and wanton disregard for truth, honesty and integrity, a character unbefitting of a Federal Minister.
"How could a Senior Minister of the Federal Republic, who is supposed to be an elder statesman, continue to dish out such disinformation to over 200 million Nigerians, knowing fully well that he was not saying the truth.
"The question at this juncture is, how many of such untrue statements has he told the President about the negotiations and how will he continue to tell such fabricated stories before Nigerians? What would be the magnitude of damage he has caused the education system of this Nation by such unstatesmanly comments? Is Dr. Ngige not aware that it does not add up that the said lecturers have done their job, yet they have not been paid their salaries for such a job, or is he cunningly portraying his Government as an unfair one?
“To put the record straight: The entire members of ASUU-UDUS Branch, including the College of Health Sciences, are fully on a total and comprehensive strike which commenced on the 14th of February, 2022 and have never had the intention of calling it off until the Federal Government wakes up to its responsibilities.
“Contrary to the claims of Dr. Ngige, there is no letter written by the Vice Chancellor of Usmanu Danfodiyo University Sokoto or any of his representatives or any Union officials, depicting that the Medical Lecturers are not on strike to any agency of government from UDUS.
“The University has not graduated any student since the commencement of the strike action in February 2022. The Union challenges the self-acclaimed ‘Conciliator’ Dr. Ngige, to produce any factual evidence to back his crooked claims.
It should, however, be on record that such dangerous precedence of falsehood without emotion, typical of ‘Conciliator’ Dr. Ngige has made him the worst Minister of Labour ever in the history of Nigerian labour relations. His antics, biasness and wickedness have earned him the highest number of strike actions during his tenure and have surpassed his predecessors with the highest number of unresolved disputes and conflicts.
“Dr Ngige, by attitude, succeeded in misleading all the critical stakeholders in the current struggle into believing that the issue at stake is unsolvable. He has also succeeded in degrading his professional status and the position he occupies, while his colleagues in the medical profession are doing wonderfully well, both in Nigeria and in the diaspora.
"It is well known globally that medical professionals are always upright and straightforward because of their noble background, but the present character of Dr. Ngige depicts a person with moral deficit, who is unfit for any reasonable or sensitive leadership position.
"His quest for now is to divide the Union through creating an unsavoury relationship between the medical lecturers and other members of the Union. This is after several unsuccessful attempts to divide the Union through the sponsorship of selected academics to form a parallel union.
"Sorry to disappoint him. We know better. This treacherous anti-intellectual posture of ‘Conciliator’ Dr. Ngige has always been the bane of the current ASUU FGN crisis.”
"We, therefore, call on the Federal Government of Nigeria to as a matter of urgency, take necessary action and call Ngige to order before his lies further plunge this nation into serious crisis.
"The struggle continues!" the statement added.