Anderson Ezeibe, national president of the Academic Staff
Union of Polytechnics (ASUP), has listed the steps the federal government must
take before the body calls off its industrial action.
On April 6, ASUP shut polytechnics across the country in
protest of the government’s inertia towards the implementation of its demands.
Speaking on AIT on Monday, Ezeibe pointed out the core
demands that once addressed by the government, the body will call off the
strike.
He said ASUP understands that some of its demands will
require giving the government some time, however, some salient issues must be
addressed.
Ezeibe said the key demands are the payment of minimum wage
arrears, the establishment of a proper regulatory structure, and a written
commitment to assent the bill calling for the creation of a National
Polytechnics Commission.
“We also expect the government to look into the issue of our
minimum wage arrears. We verily believe this government can fund this. It’s
about four billion for our sector. There’s a presidential directive in 2019
that all workers in the different MDAs should be by December 1, 2019. Here we
are in April 2021, we are still owed,” Ezeibe said.
“We expect to have a proper regulatory system to ensure that
in polytechnics our members are owed, states where our members are not allowed
to attend the mandatory retirement age and states where there are no government
councils and all, we have proper regulatory instruments to put them in line.
“Because the state has to be the same. Education is of
course on the concurrent list, but standardisation and regulation are on the
exclusive list. This federal government through its own agencies prescribes
standards.
“We expect the government to commit to the establishment of
a National Polytechnics Commission, already the bill has passed through the
first reading at the House of Representatives. But we want the government to
commit in writing, that anytime the national assembly passes all of these
processes, that this bill will be signed into law. If we have all of these,
we’ll be good.”
Ezeibe added that ASUP has been receiving signals that might
lead to another meeting with the federal government later in the week.
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