The federal government has been accused of demarketing polytechnic education in the country with its continued refusal to allow polytechnics to award degrees to students.
The Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP) said this on Tuesday in Abuja when it briefed journalists on its Delegates Conference starting on Wednesday.
The Union also warns that further delay in ending the dichotomy between HND and degree will wipe out polytechnic education in the country completely.
ASUP National President, Comrade Anderson Ezeibe, said at the briefing that many young people are no longer interested in going to polytechnics because the government has de-marketed the institution by maintaining a disparity between higher national diplomas (HND) offered by polytechnics and bachelor degrees offered by universities.
The union further said the current bill before the National Assembly, which indicates an underwhelming 7.8% is provided for the education sector, implies that the country is further away from a solution to the underfunding in the sector.
Ezeibe also said that the federal government has succeeded in creating confusion in the polytechnic system with the recent dissolution of the governing board, as many have been operating without the full complement of their governance structures since June 2023.
He also accused the government of appointing unqualified, incompetent people to run some of the institutions.
According to him, “Some of these polytechnics are actually in confused states, as processes for the appointment of principal officers have been disrupted, staff appraisal processes cannot be concluded, staff disciplinary processes cannot be concluded, and other statutory duties of the governing councils cannot be executed.”
Furthermore, he said, “Continued retention of five persons described as unfit and unqualified to be appointed rectors in five new federal polytechnics in Monguno, Shendam, Wannune, Ugep, and Ohodo can only be interpreted from the perspective of the government deliberately undermining the proper administration of the affected polytechnics.
“The disregard for extant laws in the appointment of principal officers in these polytechnics by the federal government has emboldened different state governments to tow the same path as several state governments are in the business of violating their laws in principal officers’ appointment processes.”
Ezeibe called for the immediate reconstitution of all dissolved governing councils of polytechnics in accordance with existing rules, as well as the removal of the five unfit and unqualified persons currently pretending to be rectors of some of the new federal polytechnics in the country
He also called for the stoppage of the appointment of unqualified persons as principal officers in polytechnics in Nigeria, the immediate release of the scheme of service for polytechnics, and the faithful implementation of the approved roadmap for the education sector, particularly as it affects the establishment of a national commission for polytechnics as well as the granting of degree-awarding status for polytechnics.
In addition, the ASUP President demanded an upward review of the budgetary provisions for education in the 2024 appropriation bill before the National Assembly to reflect actual needs for the sector, a total withdrawal of the 2021 circular requesting institutions to make remittances of their internally generated funds, and immediate implementation of the approved new wage structure of 35% and 25% for chief lecturers and other categories of staff in the sector with the arrears.
Also in his demands were: the release of owed promotion arrears; the unconditional release of the eight-month-owed salaries of university staff in the country; and the return to the table of renegotiation to enable a proper renegotiation of the ASUP/FGN 2010 agreement, amongst others.
“While we expect the government to work assiduously towards a revamp of the education sector, we expect that the issues highlighted in this document should be given the requisite attention.
These are key items undermining the functionality of the education sector in general and polytechnic education in particular.” Ezeibe stated.
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