SSANIP threatens indefinite strike over unpaid arrears, insecurity

The Senior Staff Association of Nigeria Polytechnics (SSANIP) has raised fresh concerns over unpaid salary arrears, unabated insecurity in tertiary institutions, and delays in housing loan payments, as it warns that members may embark on an indefinite strike if the Federal Government fails to act on its demands by the end of July 2026.

This is contained in a communiqué jointly signed by the National President, Comr. Philip Adebanjo Ogunsipe, and the National Secretary, Comr. Nura Shehu Gaya, at the end of the union’s 80th General Executive Council (GEC) meeting held on Wednesday in Abuja.

According to the Communiqué, GEC-in-Session said it “deliberated extensively on matters affecting the welfare of its members, the state of Polytechnic education, and other critical national issues,” expressing concern over worsening conditions in the sector.

The union decried the continuous and protracted delay in the release and payment of outstanding promotion arrears for the years 2021 to 2025, warning that affected members were being subjected to avoidable financial hardship and psychological distress.

SSANIP also condemned the alleged withholding of “one-year 25 per cent/35 per cent salary increment arrears owed to non-teaching staff in federal polytechnics, describing the development as unfair and demoralising.

On security, the Association lamented the worsening situation across the country, citing the attack on Federal Polytechnic Kaura Namoda, Zamfara State, where a staff member was killed, while two staff and six students remain in captivity.

The union further noted that the situation has created an atmosphere of severe panic, causing staff and students to flee the institution for safety, and called for urgent intervention by security agencies to secure their release.

SSANIP also condemned delays in accessing the National Housing Fund (NHF) home renovation loans administered by the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria, alleging that members have been excluded despite continuous salary deductions over several years.

It further raised concerns over “lack of transparency in the implementation of the Yayale Ahmed Committee report”, alleging that communication of outcomes had not been extended fairly to the union.

The council issued several resolutions, including a demand for the immediate payment of all outstanding arrears, urgent reform of NHF loan processes, improved campus security, and compensation for the family of the slain staff member.

It warned that failure to release implementation directives of the Yayale Ahmed Committee report by the end of July 2026 would compel it to direct members nationwide to embark on an indefinite industrial action.

SSANIP, however, reaffirmed its commitment to industrial peace but warned that continued neglect of its demands could leave the union with no option but to resort to industrial action, noting that industrial harmony is a two-way street, and adding that members’ patience had been stretched to its elastic limit.”