OSPOLY, Ede Poly, Others To Shutdown As Polytechnic Lecturers Declare Strike

 

Osun State Polytechnic, Iree, Federal Polytechnic, Ede, and other Polytechnics in Nigeria are set to face another academic disruption as the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP) has announced a two-week warning strike, commencing on December 2, 2024.

The strike, according to ASUP, is a reaction to the Federal Government’s failure to meet its 11-point demands and address governance violations in the polytechnic system.

Speaking after the Union’s 112th National Executive Council (NEC) meeting in Abuja, ASUP President, Comrade Kpanja Shamnah, stated that the strike is aimed at pressing home their grievances over several unresolved issues, including the improper appointment of rectors in Federal Polytechnic Nekede and Wannune, in violation of the Federal Polytechnics Act.

“Our union’s 112th NEC session reviewed the status of our engagements with the government and proprietors of polytechnics nationwide. We resolved to withdraw services nationwide for two weeks as a warning to address these issues threatening the progress of the sector,” Kpanja said.

The Union lamented the appointment process at Federal Polytechnic, Nekede, which it described as a “sordid display of impunity” by the institution’s governing council.

Similarly, ASUP accused the Federal Polytechnic, Wannune, of appointing a rector without following due process.

READ ALSO: Strike Looms As ASUP’s 15-Day Ultimatum To FG Expires

Other issues raised include the government’s failure to review and release the NEEDS Assessment intervention funds for 2023, non-payment of arrears related to the 35/25 percent salary review for members, and the absence of peculiar academic allowances in the planned post-IPPIS era.

ASUP further criticized the intrusion of the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) into the admission processes of polytechnics, an area traditionally handled by academic boards.

The Union also decried the lack of compliance by most state-owned polytechnics in implementing the salary review and their failure to remit arrears owed to lecturers. In particular, Osun State Polytechnic (OSPOLY), Iree; Federal Polytechnic, Ede; and other state institutions are expected to be affected by the strike.

ASUP warned that if the government fails to address its demands within the two-week warning strike, an indefinite industrial action would follow.

“This action is not taken lightly, but it is necessary to rescue the sector from the grip of bad governance and neglect,” Kpanja said.

The strike comes barely a month after ASUP issued a 15-day ultimatum to the Federal Government, which expired without any meaningful resolution.

According to the Union, the government has shown little commitment to resolving the crisis in the polytechnic sector, leaving lecturers and students at the receiving end of the system’s failings.

The Union specifically demanded the immediate reversal of all actions inconsistent with the Polytechnics Act and called for transparency in the appointment of principal officers in institutions nationwide.