From Austine Tule, Makurdi
The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) Federal University, Wukari in Taraba state has accused the management of allegedly diverting earned allowances meant for payment of staff.
The branch chairman of SSANU, Mr. Stepnen Tadawus made the accusation when he led members to joined their counterparts across the country for a 3 day protest as directed by the National Leadership of the Joint Action Committee of NASU and SSANU.
Members carrying banners and placards with diverse inscriptions describing their demands, lamented the attitude of government towards their plight: saying for too long government had taken the non teaching staff unions in the Universities for a ride.
According to the SSANU chairman, government always sign memorandum of understanding with the association but later reneged, pointing out that if government had been keeping to agreements, there would be industrial peace in our citadels of learning.
Comrade Tadawus expressed disappointment over the performance of IPPIS which he alleged had been shortchanging the unions through arbitrary, inconsistent and irregular payment regimes and frowned at government’s inability to pay the minimum wage arrears.
He decried the non payment of a backlog of arrears of earned allowance as well as at the skewed sharing formula for the recently released N40b and non payment of retirement benefits to members, appealing to relevant authorities to investigate the disbursement of the funds.
