ASUU Threatens Showdown Over FG’s IPPIS Imposition
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has threatened another showdown with the federal government over planned imposition Integrated Personnel Payroll System (IPPIS) on her members.
The leaders had summoned an emergency National Executive Council meeting of the Union where it was agreed that the leadership of the Union at the university level should begin mobilisation of members for an action against the President Muhammadu Buhari led administration.
President Muhammadu Buhari had reportedly directed that any worker not on the IPPIS would no longer receive salary.
The Chairman ASUU, University of Ibadan chapter, Prof. Deji Omole on Sunday in Ibadan said that the Union was not against accountability but will resist attempt by the government to violate existing laws and autonomy of the University.
According to him, ASUU has offered to help the federal government design the appropriate template that will factor in the peculiarities of university lecturers in the IPPIS but the government seems bent on using the world-bank designed exploitative template.
The ASUU boss said the template designed by government plans to enslave intellectuals as it does not make provisions for payment of arrears of promotion, study leave allowance, responsibility allowance among others.
He explained that the federal government template was designed to phase-out university lecturers who were above 60 years which was against the new policy where professors retire at 70 years.
Omole lashed out at the Buhari-led government for consistently demonstrating his hatred for public-funded universities by introducing many illegal policies that negatively affected the smooth running of the universities.
He noted that FG has also failed to honour any policy that that will improve the quality education in Nigeria.
“Forceful imposition of IPPIS on university workers is a violation of the university autonomy act. It is therefore illegal. While ASUU is not against accountability on the part of the university administration, government should not be allowed to destroy public universities in its purported claims of fighting corruption.
“Our members should remain focus and committed in our struggles to protect public university education by resisting forceful imposition of IPPIS on university workers”, he said
