Madein, Accountant-General of the Federation
FG releases withheld salaries of NASU, pensions, nothing about SSANU
The withheld salaries of striking Non-Academic Staff Union of Federal Universities (NASU) has been released by the Federal Government, but nothing about Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, SSANU
A statement from the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (OAGF) in Abuja disclosed this.
The statement also said According to the government has also released funds for the payment of benefits to retirees under the Nigerian Union of Pensioners Contributory Pension Scheme Sector (NUPCPS)
According to the statement, payments to the Non-Academic Staff of Federal Universities had commenced and many have confirmed receipt.
OAGF office restated its commitment to efficiently cater for the well-being of Nigerian workers and retirees.
This position is on the heels of an ongoing nationwide strike by NASU and the Senior Staff Association of Nigeria Universities (SSANU) which started on Sunday.
Indeed, SSANU and NASU embarked on an indefinite strike on Monday over the non-payment of their four months salary arrears, paralysing and turning universities into ghosts institutions.
Newstide247.com reports that SSANU president, Mohammed Ibrahim, said they will not go back to work without their salaries, arrears and other demands being met.
According to him, “So, it’s not the issue of meeting. The issue is that we want payment and that every procedure has been followed.
“They can just simply direct this payment and I assure you in less than 24 hours, we can just refer back to our principals and this strike will be suspended.
“Well, assurances are not something that we have not received before. So assurances from politicians and assurances from government officials are not new things to us. But the mandate that we have from our members is that this strike is totally indefinite and that we will only resume when we get the alerts.”
The ongoing strike has crippled activities across public universities in Nigeria with classes and other facilities shut.
Only in March, both SSANU and NASU embarked on a seven-day warning strike – beginning March 18, 2024, over the non-payment of their salaries.
President Bola Tinubu had directed the payment of withheld salaries for university workers owing to their strike of 2022.
The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Tertiary Institutions, Dandutse Mohammed, had said the ongoing was unnecessary, calling for dialogue with the Federal Government.
However, the statement by the OAGF did not mention payment for members of the SSANU.