Abuja Market Women Protest Continuous Closure Of Universities

Business activities within the Federal Secretariat and areas bordering the Eagle Square, Abuja were grounded on Monday as over 200 market women took to the streets to protest against the protracted face-off between the Federal Government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities.

The disagreement between the parties has led to the closure of public universities in the country for three months.

The protesters, who matched to the Federal Ministry of Education to register their grievances, were received by the Permanent Secretary, MacJohn Nwabiala.

The protest, which started at about 11am, was coordinated by the President of National Association of Market Women, Mrs. Felicia Sani.

She berated ASUU leaders for making what she described as "outrageous demands from the Federal Government."

Sani said it was unfair for state-owned universities to earn equal salaries with their federal counterparts, adding that such measures would cripple the economy.