Latest educational news reaching our news desk today, is that the Nigeria Polytechnic Lecturers has commence Indefinite Strike Today, the 4th of October 2013.
According to the National President of Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP), Mr Chibuzor Asomugha, on Thursday directed the union members nationwide to commence an indefinite strike starting from today, the 4th of October, 2013.
According to Mr. Chibuzor Asomugha who told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos state that the directive became imperative following the Federal Government’s failure to meet the union’s demands.
He went further to explained that two months after the union had suspended its previous strike, nothing had been done by the government to address the union’s demands.
NAN also recalled that the decision to embark on this indefinite strike on October 4 was reached at the 75th National Executive Council (NEC) meeting of the union in Bida, Niger State on September 28th 2013.
We also did recalled that ASUP embarked on a nationwide indefinite strike on April 29 over the Federal Government’s failure to address its grievances.
The strike was later suspended on July 17th pending that their needs will be met by the federal government.
The suspension was as a result of the intervention of the Joint Committees on Education of the Senate and the House of Representatives.Mr. Chibuzor Asomugha also told the News agency that it was over two months that the union suspended its strike, but the Federal Government had not fulfilled its pledge to address the issues.
“Nothing has been done since we suspended our strike in July,” he said.
Mr. Chibuzor Asomugha also pointed out that the union gave the Federal Government up till September 16, — a two-month grace period — within which to negotiate and settle the issues, but noted that nothing had been done so far by the federal government.
The president also said that the Federal Government had not fulfilled its bargain in the 2009 agreement with the union.
The union had, earlier in a statement on Monday, notified the Federal Government of its decision to go on strike if the government did not honour the agreements reached, but according to our informant, the federal government did almost nothing about the strike.
NAN also reported that the union’s demands include the possibility of lower cadres rising to CONTISS 15, and the release of a white paper on the visitation panel to the federal polytechnics.