Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) has accused suspected government cabals of frustrating the payment of its four months withheld salaries. 

In a communique issued at the end of its 47th regular National Executive Council (NEC) meeting in Federal University of Technology (FUT) Akure, the association’s President, Mohammed Haruna Ibrahim, also said while it was not averse to the settlement of withheld salaries of ASUU members, it however, viewed the action as a violation and breach of the post-strike agreement with government on non-victimisation of its members, who participated in the strike.

He added: “We strongly oppose this discriminatory practice, which we view as government’s open invitation to industrial crisis. Credible information available to us has it that the directive of Mr President is for all university-based unions to be paid four months’ salary.”

NEC, therefore, suspects saboteurs in this government bent on destabilising and destroying the good intent of Mr President towards sustaining industrial peace in the university system.”
 
On the next line of action, SSANU said: “NEC-in-session, therefore, calls on the relevant authorities of Government to immediately implement the directive of Mr President by paying our members the four months withheld salaries, failing which NEC has approved a one-week warning strike in conjunction with our sister unions in JAC, NASU.”

MEANWHILE, six years after the 2019 national minimum wage law came into effect, SSANU has lamented that 26 institutions are yet to benefit from the payment. 
 
It said: “NEC-in-session observed that some of her members are yet to be paid arrears of the National Minimum Wage, which was approved in 2018 despite the efforts of the Union. NEC, therefore, calls on Federal and State Governments to, as a matter of urgency, commence payment to the affected institutions,” it said. 
 
The association also said the 25 and 35 per cent wage increase that government awarded to its members in 2023 for which a corresponding salary structure had been circulated via a letter from the National Salaries, Income and Wages Commission in September last year had not been implemented. It claimed that a provision of N100 billion for the purpose in the budget for that purpose was yet to be paid.