FG, labour agree two-week pause on King’s College takeover

The Federal Government and labour unions in the Federal Ministry of Education have agreed to suspend the implementation of the proposed 35-year management concession of King’s College, Lagos, for two weeks.

The agreement was reached on Wednesday following a meeting between the education ministers and representatives of the unions, amid protests over the proposed arrangement with the King’s College Old Students Association.

Under the five-point agreement, the unions also agreed to immediately suspend their industrial action, while the government assured workers that no staff member would be victimised for participating in the protest.

The parties further agreed to withdraw policemen from the premises of King’s College and constitute a seven-member committee to negotiate and review the agreement between the Federal Government and the Old Students Association.

The agreement came after a day of tension at the Federal Ministry of Education headquarters in Abuja, where workers blocked the entrance and chanted, “Alausa must go,” as the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, arrived.

The government had maintained that the proposed 35-year arrangement was a management concession and not a sale of the school, with ownership remaining with the Federal Government.

The Minister of State for Education, Prof. Suwaiba Ahmad, had earlier said the agreement was open to review, assuring unions that the government was willing to listen to their concerns.

“The agreement is not cast in stone. We keep saying this, we are willing to listen,” she said.

The seven-member committee is expected to use the two-week window to examine the contentious provisions of the agreement and make recommendations to the government and labour.