From John Adams, Minna
Academic activities in the Niger State College of Education, Minna, were shut down Tuesday by the institution’s branch of the College of Education Academic Staff Union (COEASU), in compliance with the nationwide strike called by the national body.
The entrance gate of the institution was barricaded as early as 7:00 am by the branch union led by its Chairman Comrade Ibrahim Mohammed Hassan as all academic staff were turned back at the gate.
When our correspondents visited the institution to see the level of compliance of the strike, only non-academic staff were being allowed into the institution while students were seen moving out of the campus with their belongings.
COEASU on Tuesday resumed its nationwide suspended strike since 2018 to press home their demands which include the non-release of N15 billion approved out of the N456 billion revitalisation fund recommended for both Federal and State own Colleges of Education across the country.
The College of Education, Minna branch Chairman of COEASU, Comrade Ibrahim Mohammed Hassan told our correspondent in an interview in Minna that the strike is for four weeks for the first instance, stressing that “the resumption of the suspended strike was necessitated by the continued inaction of government on lingering issues in spite of the Union’s lengthy perseverance of uncommon disposition towards alternative dispute resolution.”
Hassan, who led other executive members of the union to ensure full compliance with the strike, listed other demands of the union to include non-implementation of the consequential effect of the implementation of CONPCASS, 15 on lower cadre since 2014, the non-implementation of the 2014 needs assessment report in Colleges of Education, and non-payment of outstanding promotion arrears.
Other demands of the Union are non-payment of responsibility allowance to Librarian in Colleges of Education, poor funding of Colleges of Education and poor condition of state-owned Colleges of Education and above all, the Federal Government’s recalcitrant insistence on IPPIS against the more reliable alternative of UTAS.
The chairman however disclosed that the local chapter of COEASU has it own grievances with the Niger state government over what he called “gross inadequate manpower situation of both Teaching and non-Teaching Staff in the state College of Education, non-payment of salary arrears owed some of our staff arising from the Panti committee”, insisting that even if the National body decides to call off the strike, “we will continue the strike until our demands are met.”
When contacted for his reaction, the Provost of the institution, Prof Muhammadu Yakub Auna, told our correspondent that the institution has no issue with the strike as it was nationwide and the institution’s COEASU branch has no choice but to join the strike.
According to him, “I don’t have any problem with the strike, the Union has It grudges with the government and the issues have to be resolved between the two. It is not a local strike so we don’t have a problem with it; the branch here decided to join in solidarity, that is all.
“We are only appealing to them to allow us in the institution to have some skeletal work here on campus. Even if they are withdrawing their teaching staff, they should allow some system to operate. As management, we don’t have problems with the strike.”