Strike Looms As ASUP Calls For FG’s Implementation Of Demands

.

The government is not giving listening ear as such many of their demands are yet to be met.  It emphasized.

“The ASUP/FGN Rapid Responses Committee was set up as a monitoring vehicle to ensure the full implementation of the items set in process as well as addresses any other emergent issue. On this basis, the industrial action was suspended for 3 months.

However, critical aspects of the memorandum of action remains unimplemented despite several appeals and correspondences. These items still pending includes:

1. Non release of arrears of the new minimum wage: The new minimum wage ACT has been in implementation since April 2019, with further directive by the President of the nation that staff of ALL Ministries, departments and agencies of the government should be paid the accrued amounts by December 31st, 2019. The government has reneged in this as the arrears accruing to staff of Federal Polytechnics remain unpaid more than 2 years after the expiration of the President’s directive and nearly 3 years after implementation. As we speak, our members are still owed for 10 months. As a consequence, the government has continued to withhold portions of the legitimate emoluments of members of our union without their consent.

2. Non-release of Promotion arrears for 2019, 2020 and 2021

3. Sustained infractions in implementation of the provisions of the Federal Polytechnics Act as amended in 2019: Following the signing into law of the Federal Polytechnics’ ACT as amended in n2019, implementers of the ACT including the Federal Ministry of Education, National Board for Technical Education, some Governing Councils as well as Managements of Polytechnics have developed the habit of observing some provisions in breach. Such infractions are manifest currently in appointment process for Principal Officers in Federal Polytechnics. Despite the complaints by our Union as well as a court Judgments on respect for provisions of the ACT, incidences of disrespect continue to prevail.

4. Delay in the appointment of Rectors: We have continued to witness avoidable delays in the appointment of Rectors of some federal Polytechnics. Federal Polytechnics Mubi remains without a substantive Rector for over 2 years, Kaduna Polytechnics, Federal Polytechnics Offa and Federal Polytechnic Ekowe,  despite the conclusion of the process for appointment of Rectors in the affected institutions.

5. Non release of the scheme of service for Polytechnics: Since 2017, the sector has been struggling with a review process for the scheme of service and conditions of service in use in the sector.

6.  Non release of the reviewed normative instruments for institution/management and programs accreditation: in view of the large disparity in governance platforms, management practices as well as conditions of service in the sector, our Union agreed with the government on the needs to harmonize instruments for accreditation and reaccreditation standards. These abuses are more prevalent in the institutions under state proprietorship as different state governments continue to establish Polytechnics without provisions for funding, requisite governance platforms and qualified management and teaching personnel. The overall impact is seen in the production of half baked graduates from our Polytechnics. Despite meetings with the government in this regard and a process initiated to produce this document, the government appears lethargic in its disposition to enforce standard in the sector.

Failure to meet their demands, the union will after the expiration of a one month notice take the needed action. It stated.

“What ASUP is saying is, let the government be student friendly. Let it provide an enabling environment for students to learn. Instead of students leaving the country to study elsewhere there is need to have the needed infrastructure to correct the existing decadents on ground. We don’t want to produce half baked students.

“Following exhaustive deliberations, on the issues as listed above, the 102nd meeting of the Union’s National Executive Council has resolved to give the government a further 1 month as an ultimatum to address the outstanding issues as listed, or face a review of the suspended industrial action by our Union.

“We are deploying this medium to equally appeal to members of the public to prevail on the government to do the needful and avoid a shutdown of the sector. In choosing to extend the long expired 3 months suspension period of our industrial actions, we are convinced that the extra window of 1 month typifies our level of restraint and consideration for our students and other members of the public even as well hope that the government will take advantage of this opportunity to avoid a shutdown of the sector.