FG insensitive to polytechnic education –ASUP

[Mirror]

There seems to be no end in sight for the on-going industrial action embarked upon by the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnic (ASUP) to press home some of their demands from the Federal Government. At the moment, ASUP has accused the government as being insensitive to the plight of polytechnic education in the country.

Arising from its 74th National Executive Council meeting at the Federal Polytechnic Oko, Anambra State at the weekend, the union resolved to engage the government further until their demands were met, especially with what they identified as insensitivity on the part of the government.

The National President of ASUP, Comrade Chibuzor Asomugha had in one of his speeches, recalled some of the reasons for the industrial action which he said took effect after the expiration of their 21-day ultimatum that expired on April 22, this year and the subsequent one-week warning strike that dovetailed into an indefinite strike beginning from Monday 29 April, 2013.

According to him, some of the demands included the need for constitution of the Governing Councils of Federal Polytechnics, the migration of the lower cadres on the 15 salary scale, the release of the White Paper on the Visitations to Federal Polytechnics, the need for the commencement of the Needs Assessment of Nigerian Polytechnics and the worrisome state of public polytechnics in the country.

Other demands included: "The continued appointment of unqualified persons as rectors and provosts of polytechnics, monotechnics and colleges of technologies by some state governments; the refusal of most state governments to implement the approved salary packages (CONPCASS) for their polytechnics, monotechnics and colleges of technologies and the 65-year retirement age; the insistence of the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation to include federal polytechnics in the IPPIS module as against the union's protestations while other arms of the tertiary education sub sector are allowed to maintain the status quo."

They also demanded among others: "The continued recognition of The National Board for Technical Education as the regulatory body of Nigerian Polytechnics as against the union's repeated call for the establishment of a National Polytechnics Commission (NPC); the reluctance of the Office of the Head of Service to approve the Revised Scheme of Service for polytechnics and the non commencement of the re-negotiation of the FGN/ASUP agreement as contained in the signed agreement".

Asomugha said he would like it to be put on record that the "issues on this list were first brought to the attention of government as early as February, 2012. In December, 2012, following government's inexorable body language to our demands, NEC of our great Union served government with a 30-day ultimatum, which expired on January 31, 2013.

The intervening period had witnessed spirited efforts by our Union to persuade government to pay heed to our concerns in order to avert the present stage of engagement".

He regretted that while "the thrust of these demands are instructive and conceived in good faith, and are geared towards the creation of broadened and balanced options that would ensure proper development of polytechnic education in Nigeria, it is unfortunate that government has not given enough attention to addressing them even when it is clear that Nigeria's growth prospects will be determined, not by its natural resources, but by its human resources and quality technological education

National Mirror