From Isma’il Adamu
The Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics, ASUP, will embark on an indefinite strike from April 6 following what the union described as unresolved issues with federal and some state governments.
In a communique during the National Executive Council meeting of the union in Katsina, ASUP President, Comrade Anderson Ezeibe listed the issues of contention to include failure to implement the 2014 NEEDS Assessment Report on government-owned Polytechnic and the non-implementation of 65 years retirement age for academic staff in some state-owned polytechnics.
He also cited the non-payment of 10 months minimum wage arrears of members in federal Polytechnics, failure of some state governments to implement the minimum wage and the non-payment of staff salaries in Abia, Ogun, Osun, Plateau, Benue, Edo and Cross River states.
Other issues are the non-payment of promotion arrears in federal Polytechnics and non-payment of annual increments in some states.
The union also called for the immediate reconstitution of governing councils of polytechnics where there are none, and full implementation of the provisions of the Federal Polytechnics Act as well as its domestication in non-compliant states.
ASUP directed its members nationwide to prepare for a full-scale industrial action.