EKOHOTBLOG reports that academic activities in universities across Nigeria may once paralyse following a disagreement between various unions over the sharing formula of the just-approved N22.127 billion for payment of earned allowances for the university staff.
This online newspaper gathered that out of the approved amount, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) is to take a lion share of 75 per cent of the total sum, while the other three unions, the Non-Academic Staff Union of Education and Associated Institutions (NASU), the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU), and the National Association of Academic Technologists (NAAT), will share the remaining 25 per cent among themselves.
It would be recalled that the last N40 billion Earned Allowances released by the Federal Government (FG) for the four universities-based unions where ASUU was also allocated 75 per cent of the total sum had generated a crisis in the university system.
According to a report by Nigerian Tribune, a reliable source disclosed that two of the unions, NASU and SSANU, have rejected the sharing formula and warned the federal government to reverse it immediately in order not to cause an industrial dispute in the university system.
The two unions under the umbrella of the Joint Action Committee (JAC) have given the government two weeks to redress what they described as injustice meted out to them.
The source who is privy to the development revealed that JAC had written to the Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, to intervene in the looming but avoidable crisis in the universities.
Begged to be addressed under the condition of anonymity, the source said the letter refusing the sharing formula that was sent to the Minister of Labour and Employment, who is the Conciliator-in-Chief of the country was copied to the Minister of Education and the Executive Secretary of the National University Commission (NUC).
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The letter, the source further revealed was signed by the General Secretary of NASU, Comrade Peters Adeyemi and the National President of SSANU, Comrade Mohammad Ibrahim.
The letter it was learnt was titled, “Refusal of Federal Government to honour Memorandum of Action”.
The source said, “The leadership of the Joint Action Committee of NASU and SSANU is constrained to write the Honourable Minister in respect of the total failure of the Federal Government to positively address all the issues contained in the Memorandum of Action signed on 25th February 2021 and the refusal of the Minister of Labour and Employment to finalise action on the subsequent Memorandum of Action reached at the meeting of 25th August 2021.
“It is regrettable to note that the draft of the Memorandum of Action reached on Thursday 25th August 2021 which was handed over to JAC leadership for vetting was effectively returned on Monday 30th August 2021 and almost two months after the meeting, no action has been taken.”
Some of the contentious issues in the letter were the Payment of Minimum Wage Consequential Adjustment arrears, alleged Inconsistencies in IPPIS payment, Payment of hazard responsibility allowance to deserving members and the Earned Allowances.
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