The ongoing strike embarked upon by lecturers in the Nigerian Colleges of Education has been extended by another three weeks.
The lecturers, under the aegis of Colleges of Education Academic Staff Union, attributed their decision to the failure of the Federal Government to embrace the union’s preference for the University Transparency Accountability System, UTSA and failure of the state governments to address issues peculiar to state-owned colleges of Education.
The extension is contained in a communique issued at the end of its National Executive Council meeting.
The communique signed by the COEASU National President, Dr Smart Olugbeko, and the General Secretary, Dr Ahmed Lawan.
According to them, most state governments are yet to address issues locally peculiar to state-owned Colleges of Education, especially in Oyo, Ogun, Kwara, Abia, Kogi, Kaduna, Zamfara, Yobe, Akwa Ibom, Benue, Edo, and Ebonyi states.
In fact, the situation has further deteriorated in some of these states with the enforcement of the draconian rule of “no work, no pay” and victimisation of Union leaders.
“The FG is yet to come out clear on the Union’s preference for UTAS against the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System, IPPIS
“Having submitted the Union’s charter of demands to the FG team for the renegotiation, the posture and sincerity of government towards meaningful collective bargaining cannot be ascertained until August 2, 2022, when the renegotiation proper begins.
NEC unanimously resolved that the strike action should continue for the next three weeks within which the Union hopes that the foregoing reservations should have been addressed.
