Non-teaching staff of the University of Ibadan have declared “no retreat, no surrender” in their agitation for a review of the template of the federal government for the sharing of the about-to-be-released tranche of the 2021 Earned Allowances.
The non-teaching staff, who led a protest march to the school’s gate, on Wednesday, described as pathetic, appalling and unacceptable the 25 percent ratio of the N22billion for earned allowances to be released whereas its teaching counterpart is to receive 75 percent.
Under the auspices of the Non-Academic Staff Union (NASU) and Senior Staff Union of Nigerian Universities (SSANU), the non-teaching staff said a series of protests will be staged until the federal government redresses the sharing formula to its favour.
Led by Chairman, SSANU, Mr Abiodun Omisore and his NASU counterpart, Mr Malachy Etim, the non-teaching staff lamented that what it called injustice against them had become a usual occurrence.
Speaking on behalf of the unions, Omisore accused the federal government of consistently skewing the payment of earned allowances in favour of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
Historically, Omisore stated that, in 2017, non teaching staff got 11 percent of the N23billion released for earned allowances while the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) got 89 percent.
Omisore noted that a similar scenario played out in 2019, when out of N25billion allocated, 80percent was allotted to ASUU while the three non-teaching unions got the remainder of 20 percent.
When the scenario played out in 2019, he reported that government promised to address the perceived lopsidedness in the following year’s supplementary budget.
Omisore said the non-teaching staff unions demanded fairness arguing that the Earned Allowances were actually included in the supplementary budget so as to address payment gaps and inadequacies relating to non-teaching members of staff of the universities.
Omisore said: “This protest has been called at the instance of the national leadership of the unions (SSANU/NASU) for the public to rehear the concern of the good people of the non-teaching fold in our various public universities whose rights and privileges are being trampled upon again by the federal government.
“It is bothersome that in spite of the concerted effort of the leadership, the federal government had been adamant and recalcitrant by not retracting the purported questionable sharing formula document.
“It is most traumatic and agonizing that in the 2021 tranche, a sum of 22billion naira was to be released, but with a caveat that the lion share would still be given to ASUU on 75percent:25percent ration. This we found pathetic, appalling and unacceptable.
“It should be noted that, as a people we have decided to take our destinies in our hands, we are not ready to capitulate and become victims of our own silence, we are more than ready to ensure that the federal government redress the balance to our favour.
“We are not going to retreat until the federal government retracts itself on this most appalling, funereal and draconian sharing formula of the about-to-be-released tranche of 2021 Earned Allowances, payment of our promotion arrears and arrears of the minimum wage.
“We wish to note that the federal government in spite of the fact that it has settled the arrears of the minimum wage for all workers of other MDAs, it has refused to pay the arrears of the consequential minimum wage for the workers of the public universities. It is apposite to note that several promises have been made since 2019 without fulfilling any.”
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