… Says time running out
From Aniekan Aniekan, Calabar
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The University of Calabar Branch of the Academic Staff Union of Universities have warned the federal government not to stampede the union into the “mother of all strikes”.
Dr. Peter Ubi, the Branch Chairman of the union, made this known in the ASUU Secretariat of the institution during a media engagement.
He said the FG has, over the years, failed to address key demands of the union, which include Renegotiation of the 2009 ASUU-FGN Agreement, sustainable funding of universities, revitalisation of universities and victimisation of our colleagues in LASU, KSU (now Prince Abubakar Audu University) and FUTO.
Other demands he listed include outstanding 25-35% salary arrears, promotion arrears for over 4 years and third-party deductions.
Giving more clarity on their grouse with the government, he said, “The government made promises on these issues; regrettably, these undisputed issues have not been resolved over several years now.
“The government cannot continue to keep the Union talking forever. The general public is invited to note that ASUU has tried several ways and strategies of resolving the conflict in the education sector.
“Unfortunately, the government, in its characteristic manner, has paid deaf ears to our legitimate demands, and has constantly pushed our Union to embark on a strike action”, he said.
The union also decried a situation where a senior academic who has served for over 40 years ends up with a monthly salary of N150,000, calling it cruel.
He added that this has exposed their retired colleagues’ chronic health conditions, saying the ugly trend must be reversed.
The union also denounced the planned loan scheme by the federal government, saying it is a bait intended to incapacitate university-based cooperative societies.
The union welcomed the moratorium on new public universities by the federal government, but wondered why this was not extended to private tertiary institutions.
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