All activities were grounded at the University of Ibadan on Wednesday as non-teaching staff of the institution began a-three-day warning strike to protest the non payment of Earned Allowance.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that three unions made up of non academic staff barricaded the entrance and exit of the institution, obstructing human and vehicular traffic.
The unions are the Senior Staff Association of Universities, the Non-Academic Staff Union and the National Association of Academic Technologists.
NAN reports that members of the unions carried placards with various inscriptions such as: SSANU rejects every effort designed for the ruination of our future; and We say no to rough manipulation of our future.
One of the inscriptions also stated: Let justice and equity be your guiding principle for achieving peace in Nigerian universities.
The Chairman of SSANU in the university, Wale Akinremi, said the warning strike was to compel the management to pay what he called the ‘earned’ allowance approved by the Federal Government.
Akinremi said the three unions had two weeks ago given a 14-day ultimatum to the management to effect the payment of the allowance and some other benefits to the staff.
He said: “This is just the beginning of a three-day warning strike.
“We have exhausted our patience.
“We feel the management is not sincere.
“It is not concerned about the welfare of workers.”
Akinremu, however, said the union executives would meet at the end of the warning strike should the management fail to comply with their demand.
Moses Wanan, a first year student of Law at the university, said he was not happy about the development.
According to Wanan, the university is wasting much of the academic session with the persistent strikes and students unrest.
He said: “Just in June, we were sent home because of the shortage of electricity and water and now there is a strike.
“We, as students, are not happy with the development.”
Another student, Cornelius Okolo, said he was surprised when some members of the union sent them out of the classrooms.
Okolo said: “We were sent out by some union members that we should go back to the hostels.
“We want the management to meet their demand on time because our examination is near.”
The institution’s Director of Public Communication, Olatunji Oladejo, said management was working round the clock to ensure improvement in the financial resources of the university.
Oladejo also said: “The management had invited the leadership of the three non-teaching staff unions to a meeting on the implementation of the earned allowance in the office of the Vice Chancellor on June 30.
“The meeting lasted till the early hours of this Wednesday.
“There, the management drew their attention to the previous meeting of June 17, where the new Pro Chancellor and Chairman of Council, Dr. Umar Mustapha, met the staff unions and pleaded with them on the issue.
“In this regard, the management has planned to pay some money with the regular salary for June.”
Oladejo, however, said that the plan failed because as at the time the regular salary and the promotion arrears were paid in June, only a balance of N79,573,036.42 remained.
This balance, he said, was grossly inadequate to meet the needed amount of N146,580,000 to pay the allowance for both the senior and junior staff.
According to him, the management still pleads for the understanding and cooperation of staff on the matter.
NAN.