College union charges FG on immediate release of N15bn revitalisation fund

THE Senior Staff Union in Colleges of Education, Nigeria (SSUCOEN), has called on the Federal Government to release the N15 billion revitalisation fund approved for colleges arising from the NEEDS Assessment exercise.

President of SSUCOEN, Comrade Danladi Ali Msheliza, made the call at a meeting with the Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu, in Abuja, over the lingering and “disturbing” issues affecting members of staff of the colleges of education sector.

He also demanded the resumption of the stalled renegotiation of the 2010 FGN/SSUCOEN agreement.

Msheliza accused the Federal Government of segregating colleges of education, noting that the government had commenced renegotiation of agreements with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP), leaving out colleges of education.

He, however, commended the Federal Government for paying arrears of the minimum wage to colleges of education staff, affirming that all members of the union have received their payment.

He called on the minister of education to ensure the restoration and mainstreaming of the staff of Demonstration Schools in colleges of education, saying the Federal Government had erroneously stopped funding the schools because they were regarded to as private schools.

Msheliza argued that the Colleges of Education Staff Demonstration Schools are a requirement for graduating the students of primary Education Studies (PES) and Early Childhood Care Education (ECCE).

He also called for the reconstitution of the governing councils of colleges of education as well as a speedy passage of the bill for the amendment of the act establishing the Federal Colleges of Education, which he said had passed through the third reading in the National Assembly.

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The SSUCOEN president noted that the bill was sponsored by SSUCOEN to support the ongoing efforts to reposition colleges of education in Nigeria, adding that “it is the only act among tertiary levels of education in Nigeria that is yet to be amended.”

He also frowned on the practice where provosts are appointed from outside the college of education subsector.

“This is an aberration; it contradicts the provision of the conditions of service for colleges of education,” he said.

Msheliza, however, said that there is already a subsisting Federal Ministry of Education policy document on the practice after the court judgement in support of the position being canvassed by the union, that provosts of colleges of education should be appointed from within, citing numerous examples of such appointees that are doing well on the job.

Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu, in his response, assured the union that all the issues raised would be given due consideration and expeditious treatment.

While responding to a comment by the SSUCOEN president about poor state of some state-owned colleges of education across the country, Adamu said “if it was not for Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) intervention, most of the colleges would have been moribund.”

He threatened to withdraw the licences of the tertiary institutions that are substandard and found to have deviated from their mandates.

He promised that necessary steps would be taken to ensure the release of the N15 billion revitalisation funds to colleges, but he disagreed with the SSUCOEN President on the assertion that colleges of education are being segregated.

On Staff Demonstration Schools, Adamu said that the government would look into the issue, based on the explanation that the Colleges of Education Staff Demonstration Schools are a requirement for graduating students.