The polytechnic lecturers in the country have faulted the Federal Government’s position to withhold the unpaid salaries of public university lecturers now that they have suspended their eight months old industrial action and backed at work in their various campuses, saying the application of “no work, no pay policy” cannot work in the academic circle.
The President of the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP), Dr Anderson Ezeibe, said this on Friday in an exclusive interview with Tribune Online while reacting to the half-October salaries payment to ASUU members.
He said that workers embarking on industrial action anywhere globally is legitimate and that they do so most times as a last resort to press home their demands from the authority.
He said After all, ASUU was not the cause of the strike in the first instance, but the government that failed to meet up with its responsibilities.
He said does it mean that government wants to kill workers unionism by this its action on campuses, noting that such dream can never come to reality.
He therefore cautioned the Federal Government to take it softly with ASUU members and pay them their withheld salaries so as no to plunge the public universities back into another round of crisis.
He said it was only in atmosphere of permanent peace that quality teaching and learning can take place and government should always strive towards such.
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