ASUU strike looms as Nigerian university professors protest over unpaid 30-month allowances

• ASUU, University of Port Harcourt branch, highlighted dissatisfaction with the Federal Government’s failure to review working conditions
• Chairman Uzoma Chima, along with Secretary Salem Ejeba, called on Nigerians to intervene and urged the government to avert a potential university crisis
• Chima emphasized the need to prevent another strike, recalling ASUU’s previous 18-month strike due to inadequate lecturer welfare

Port Harcourt, Rivers state - The Academic Staff Union of Universities, University of Port Harcourt branch, has expressed dissatisfaction with the Federal Government’s neglect of reviewing working conditions for its members.

The branch said that about 325 senior lecturers who were promoted to professorial positions had yet to receive their promotion arrears, lasting 30 to 40 months.

The University of Port-Harcourt lecturers protest over poor welfare Photo credit: Peter Renae
Source: Facebook

Chairman of ASUU, UNIPORT, Uzoma Chima, in the company of the union’s Secretary, Salem Ejeba, disclosed these grievances during a press briefing on Tuesday, June 25, ahead of a planned protest on the university campus in Port Harcourt.

Vanguard reported that during the last strike in the university, lecturers were conspicuously absent in the varsity’s classrooms as students lamented the impact the development would have on their studies and the academic timetable.

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Chima urged concerned Nigerians to intervene and urged the President Bola Tinubu-led Federal Government to take necessary action to prevent a crisis in the universities, as reported by The Punch.

The chairman of the UNIPORT ASUU branch emphasized the importance of the call to prevent another union strike.

The union, however, expressed concern that the deterioration in the universities has persisted without improvement.

Chima said:

"The Federal Government has neglected to disburse promotion arrears owed to 325 lecturers at this institution, all at the professorial level. These individuals have been awaiting payment for periods ranging from 30 to 40 months.

18-month strike due to poor lecture welfare

Chima recalled that ASUU’s previous strike endured for 18 months due to the federal government’s failure to address lecturers’ welfare and university education development.

Chima expressed concern that instead of directly addressing ASUU’s concerns, the federal government has opted to impose financial constraints on its members.

He said:

"Instead of sincerely tackling and resolving the aforementioned issues, which adversely affect industrial harmony, educational quality, and the effective operation of our public universities, the Federal Government has opted to withhold our members' salaries for over seven months and resort to legal coercion through the National Industrial Court and the Appeal Court."The necessity for improved remuneration for our members cannot be overstated. "It is remarkable to note that our terms of employment have remained unchanged for the past 15 years, despite significant inflation and the severe hardships imposed on the Nigerian populace by successive governments."

Explosion kills protester carrying dynamite in Port Harcourt.

In another development, a middle-aged protester carrying dynamite has been killed while trying to discharge an explosive in Port Harcourt, Rivers state.

Legit.ng gathered that the tragic incident happened in front of Hotel Presidential at about 9.45am on Tuesday, June 25.

Source: Legit.ng