Nigerian government ignores university unions’ despite nationwide protest

After two days of a nationwide protest by non-teaching staff unions of Nigerian universities over the inconsistencies of IPPIS and sharing the formula of approved N40 billion Earned Allowance, the Ministries of Education and Labour have remained untroubled.

Since the start of the protest on Tuesday, January 12, there has been no statement either from the Ministry of Education or Labour and Employment, which are the line ministries of the protesting workers.

However, the President of the SSANU, Mohammed Haruna Ibrahim, said that he has had meetings with the IPPIS office.

The NASU and SSANU in a circular ahead of the of the three days protest had accused the Federal Government of reneging on agreements reached on october 20, 2020.

The Federal Government had approved N40 billion naira as part of Earn Allowance for all four university-based unions after its meeting with the ASUU in December 2020.

Government’s commitment to the workers had necessitated the suspension of nine months long industrial action by ASUU, but the on going protests by NASU and SSANU, which may snowball into a strike icausing another round of closure of classrooms.

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The NASU and SSANU are opposing the sharing formula of the N40 Billion Earn Allowance which they said has been fixed at 75 per cent to ASUU and 25 per cent to three non-teaching staff unions.