The Federal Government’s Tertiary Institution Staff Support Loan Scheme (TISSLS) has been described by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) as yet another antic to divert attention from signing and implementing the draft renegotiated agreement.
Persecondnews recalls that the Federal Government had, on August 14, launched the Tertiary Institutions Staff Support Fund, a welfare and empowerment initiative offering academic and non-academic staff of Nigerian tertiary institutions interest-free loans of N10 million.
The Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Olatunji Alausa, while unveiling the initiative in Abuja, described it as a strategic empowerment platform that would give both academic and non-academic staff the financial support they needed to serve students with renewed dedication and live with dignity.
Addressing a press briefing in Uyo on Monday, August 25, the Zonal Coordinator of ASUU, Calabar Zone, Mr. Ikechukwu Igwenyi, wondered how a government that owes its workforce and refuses to implement the 2009 agreement with the union would turn around to offer same workers interest free loan.
Igwenyi, who was flanked by chairpersons of the eight chapters in the zone, including the immediate past zonal coordinator, Mrs. Happiness Uduk, described the gesture as “slavish” and an insult to the lecturers’ sensibilities.
He also wondered why government could not use such funds to stabilise the workers through payment of their salaries and improvement on their wages but instead, chose to embark on what he described as frivolities.
He said: “How can a responsible government, in the face of these debts owed university lecturers, turn around to ask university-based unions to take the responsibility of guaranteeing the loan they know nothing about?
“Which salary structure will be used for the repayment? Where will this huge amount government want to invest in this so-called interest free loan come from?
“They have succeeded in imposing NELFUND on the system and trapped students in a slavish loan that will cage the future of our children and having succeeded, they have turned around to tie the hands and brains of their parents with this impossible loan scheme.
“We therefore make bold to reject the Tertiary Institution Staff Support Loan and everything it represents because it has been described as a poisoned chalice.
“It insults our sensibilities that a government that pays her workforce with an outdated salary structure adopted 17 years ago, will refuse to renegotiate the same salary since 2012 it was due; refuse to pay third party deductions for salaries paid almost a year ago and arrears of promotion; constituted several renegotiation committees which produced many well-thought-out agreements with MOUs, MOAs and timelines without implementation.”
Igwenyi further lamented that each time the union pressed its demands and tried to bring government to a dialogue table, it would come up with teasers, blackmails and distractions such as “inauguration of new Renegotiation Panel, Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System, IPPIS, salary award that is outside the principles of collective bargaining, palliatives, NELFUND and now, Tertiary Institution Staff Support Loan Scheme”.
He highlighted some of the lecturers’ grievances to include: outdated salary structure, obsolete infrastructure, non-conducive learning environment, proliferation of universities without assured sources of sustainable funding for revitalization, research and development, undue interference and intimidations by visitors of universities, among others.
Igwenyi, therefore, called for immediate signing and implementation of the draft renegotiated 2009 agreement, domestication and implementation of this agreement by respective visitors of state-owned universities, release and payment of three and half months outstanding salaries of members and the third party deductions by IPPIS.
Other demands include payment of promotion arrears and implementation of mainstreamed EAA in their salaries, review of the NUC Act to accommodate some of the lapses as have been pointed out, respect for the TETFund Act and an end to the abuse and misuse of TETFund monies to fund sundry expenses instead of research and academic development.
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