Crisis looms in Nigeria’s institutions, as ASUP joins ASUU on strike threat

The Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP) on Wednesday threatened to resume its suspended strike over the failure of the Federal Government to implement the agreement signed by both parties in April.

The union is demanding the immediate release of the approved N15 billion revitalization fund and the 10 months arrears of the minimum wage owed lecturers in the federal polytechnics.

In a communiqué issued at the end of the 16th National Delegates Conference held at Asaba, Delta State between December 6 and 10 and made available to journalists on Wednesday by its Publicity Secretary, Abdullahi Yalwa, ASUP also called for the commencement of renegotiation of the 2010 agreement signed with the government.

The union told Nigerians to hold the federal government responsible if the lecturers resume the suspended strike.

The polytechnic lecturers’ threat came just 24 hours after the Academic Staff Union of University (ASUU) alerted the federal government to embark on an indefinite strike over the non-implementation of the 2009 agreement signed by both parties.

READ ALSO: ASUU alerts Nigerian govt on strike, insists on 2009 agreement

The ASUP communiqué read: “The delegates frowned at government’s failure to fulfill its own end of the bargain resulting from the April 2021 Memorandum of Action (MoA) signed to end the ASUP strike action.

“The NDC renewed the demands for the immediate release of the approved N15 billion revitalization fund and the

10 months arrears of the minimum wage owed members in Federal Polytechnics. The NDC further resolved that, should the Union resume its suspended strike action, the government should be held responsible”.

“The NDC condemned the reckless breach of the 2019 Polytechnic Act (as amended) in any Federal Polytechnics from across the country and the failure of state governments to domesticate the Act. For this reason, the Conference called on the Institutions to abide by the provisions of the Act and also appealed to State Governments to fast track the domestication of the Act to align the governance of their institutions with acceptable standards.”

By: Yemi Kanji

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