Academic Staff Union of Polytechnic has declared that its members would from April 6, 2021, embark on a nationwide strike over the described as a “culture of neglect by the government on issues affecting the technological education sub-sector.”
ASUP President, Anderson U. Ezeibe, made this known to newsmen at the end of the 99th meeting of the National Executive Council of the union at Hassan Usman Polytechnic, Katsina. He said that the industrial action was informed by six key factors affecting polytechnic education.
Ezeibe said the government has always failed to address them over the years.
Some of the problem according to him include non-implementation of the ASUP/FG agreement of 2010, non-payment of salaries and arrears of the new minimum wage in some state-owned Polytechnics, among others.
While admitting that a meeting was held with the Federal Government in October 2020 on some of the pending issues, the union leader said the outcome of the meeting was a write off as the government failed to implement the resolutions reached.
He listed 10 conditions under which the intended April 6 industrial action may be called off to include: Implementation of the NEEDS Assessment report of 2014, reconstitution of the Governing Councils of Polytechnics, the release of Promotional areas in federal Polytechnics, among others.