Pascal Arogorn Ibe
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) yesterday vowed to resist attack on the autonomy of public universities to the last drop of their blood. This is against the backdrop of the directive by President Muhammadu Buhari that only federal workers, who have been captured by the Integrated Personnel Payroll Information System (IPPIS) platform, will continue to receive salaries.
It was learnt that the President said the directive was meant to check fraud, especially payment of salaries to non-existent personnel as well unauthorized allowances. But, the National President of ASUU, Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi, insisted that the directive was meant for civil servants, and that university academics are not civil servants.
In a statement: “ASUU: Only workers captured by IPPIS will receive salaries – Buhari,” made available to Saturday Telegraph yesterday by Ogunyemi, said ASUU would not let anybody to hide under the name of President Muhammadu Buhari to attack the autonomy of public universities because Nigerian scholars are prepared to resist it to the last drop of their blood.
“Mr. President did not say the government will not pay ASUU members for not enrolling in IPPIS. The directive was meant for civil servants and university academics are not civil servants.
“So, let nobody hide under the name of President Buhari to attack the autonomy of public universities because Nigerian scholars are prepared to resist it to the last drop of their blood.”
Ogunyemi said the idea of seeking clearance from the Head of Service (HoS) or the Office of the Accountant- General of the Federation was alien to university operations because it will halt its flexibility. He also pointed out that the union had an understanding with the government to develop an alternative platform, which would be sensitive to the operations of the university, accommodate the peculiarities of the university system and respect the autonomy of universities as obtained globally.
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