Joe Effiong, Uyo
Members of Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and officials of other unions on Monday paralysed activities at the main campus of Akwa Ibom State University (ABSU) ,Ikot Akpaden, while protesting alleged payment of half salaries in February and non payment of allowances.
One of the protesting ASUU members who alerted the public of their activities by calling a live radio programme in Uyo, said the protest was to express their grievances over illegal deduction of their salaries and non payment of staff peculiarities allowances.
“We embarked on this protest to register our grievances over illegal deductions of our salaries and non payment of our allowances. They say we are the best paid university staff in the South South. But Rivers State University of Science and Technology staff earn far more than us, same as Niger Delta University in Bayelsa,” the anonymous ASUU member said.
Daily Sun gathered that the protesters numbering more than 100, blocked the main entrance of the institution and carried different placards with various inscriptions such as;” pay us our peculiarities allowances” , “we are tired of half salaries”, ” why treating us as beggars,” amongst others.
But the vice chancellor of the university, Prof Eno Ibanga, expressed surprise at the protest.
“I came to the office this morning and saw the gate locked. According to our law, before you down tools, you have to tell the chief executive, which in this case is the university management, what yourr grievances are but they did not,” Ibanga said.
“The genesis of this protest is that the union went to the government for negotiations on the minimum wage. Government approved the minimum wage table and gave to me. It is the implementation of this table that they said I should have added something. But I said no, when a government gives you a table to implement, you pay to the letter. What should I add? I cannot sit in my office and generate a new table.
“When this happened, I called all the unions and discussed with them. This is the table approved and note, each union sent a representative to this negotiation with the government before this table came out,” the vice chancellor said.
He, however, confirmed that some staff were underpaid in the new minimum wage table and government was immediately communicated with a circular through the registrar
“But I came this morning, they locked the gate and started this protest. I have reported to government and they have already invited them to a meeting with the head of service tomorrow.” he said.
But the branch chairman of ASUU Prof Otoabsi Akpan absolved his union from the protest saying “my union was not part of it.”
Daily Sun, however, learned that ABSU ASUU has two factions; ,,the other faction lis ed by Dr Ime Okpob.