Latest news reaching us today is that the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnic (ASUP) has declared a nationwide strike which is scheduled to commence from April 6, 2021, over “culture of neglect by the Nigerian government on issues affecting the technological education sub-sector.’’
Speaking on the reason why the union decided to take on such a drastic action that will surely pull Nigerian academics into another void, as clearly exhibit by ASUU, the ASUP President, Anderson U Ezeibe, told reporters that the decision was reached at the end of the 99th meeting of the National Executive Council of the union at Hassan Usman Polytechnic in Katsina State. He disclosed that the industrial action was formed by six key factors affecting polytechnic education in the country.
ASUP president disclosed that the Nigerian federal government has consistently failed to address the board over the years.
The issues that plague Polytechnics in Nigeria include:
- Non-implementation of the ASUP/FG agreement of 2010,
- Non-payment of salaries,
- Arrears of the new minimum wage in some state-owned Polytechnics, among others.
Anderson U. Ezeibe further discloses to newsmen that the ASUP board had a meeting with the Federal Government in October 2020 on some of the pending issues. But the meeting was a total waste of time, as the government failed to implement the resolutions both parties reached.
The Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics president further listed 10 conditions under which the proposed April 6 industrial action may be called off. These conditions includes:
- Implementation of the NEEDS Assessment report of 2014,
- Reconstitution of the Governing Councils of Polytechnics,
- The release of Promotional areas in federal Polytechnics, among others.
We’re yet to get an official statement from the minister of Education over the alleged culture of neglect. More details coming soon.
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