ASUU, Again Rejects IPPIS, Says 8 Months Salaries Unpaid,Vows To Continue Court Case
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has said that the union is yet to hear from the Federal Government regarding their 8 Months withheld salaries, arguing that if the Federal Government continue with the Integrated Personnel Payroll Information System (IPPIS) for the payment of lecturers’ entitlements it would have no other options than to continue its legal actions.
In granting concessions to ASUU, the government stated that it would work with the union to modify IPPIS to recognise the unique characteristics of universities and the features of the lecturer’s preferred payment platform, the University Transparency and Accountability Solution (UTAS).
At a meeting convened by House Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila, the Acting Accountant General of the Federation (AGF), Okolieaboh Sylva, stated that the government’s adoption of more than one payment platform will incur additional costs that the government cannot afford.
Chris Piwuna, the union’s vice-president, stated on Thursday, October 20, that ASUU has never accepted IPPIS or its modified version. Piwuna said that the union’s stance remains a guarantee of the autonomy of universities.
Piwuna noted that the payment of university workers’ salaries from the office of the head of service is meddling in the affairs of the universities.
“We are not accepting that IPPIS is in any shape or form. ASUU will never accept IPPIS on our campuses,” Piwuna said.
“Autonomy of Nigerian university is our problem, not the peculiarities in IPPIS. The office of the head of service of the federation has taken over the work of the university governing councils and vice-chancellors.
“We are asking that the federal government take their hands off the universities,” he added.
Piwuna also said that the union would continue to pursue its case with the federal government at the industrial court, according to Premium Times.
The Union’s vice-president noted that even though the union obeyed the court to suspend the strike, it would continue to pursue the case.
“The government cannot bully labour unions to silence,” Piwuna said.
“Our lawyers will continue to argue our case in court and we believe that the continuation of the case in court is very important for the labour movement in this country.
“And in the response of our lawyers, they had to raise issues of agreement that have not been kept and all of that.
“We are still interested in the court case, and we are hoping that the judges will listen to us because of the respect we had for the court’s decision,” he added.
Piwuna, while speaking on the salary increment proposed by the federal government, said that ASUU has an agreement with the federal government as contained in the negotiated agreement with the Nimi-Briggs committee.
Piwuna said: “Following the submission of the Briggs committee’s draft, the government proposed a 23.5 percent salary increase for all university workers and 35 percent for professors.
“But ASUU rejected it because it was different from the contents of the Briggs committee’s agreement.
“We rejected a unilateral award of the new award of salary structure for our union because we have an understanding with the committee.
“The Agreement with Briggs committee was based on a collective bargaining agreement.”
Meanwhile, the union’s vice-president expressed optimism that the lecturers’ eight months’ salaries would be paid.
The federal government had insisted it would apply the ‘No work, No pay’ rule throughout the period of the eight-month-old strike embarked upon by the union.
Piwuna noted that the speaker of the house of representatives has appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to pay the union’s withheld salaries, but the union is yet to hear from the president.
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