The Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP) may be perfecting plans to resume indefinite strike any moment from now following the nonpayment of salaries by some states and the federal government. The National President of ASUP, Comrade Usman Dutse made this known in an interview with journalists on Sunday in Abuja.
He said aggrieved Union members had exhausted all known measures to pressure the government to address their concern but lamented that all efforts have failed. The National President of the Union disclosed that a meeting of the National Council of ASUP has been summoned for this month and members would determine the way forward thereafter.
Dutse further disclosed that the nonpayment of salary has brought untold hardship on his colleagues and called on the state governors to use the second tranche of the Paris Club Refund to settle outstanding salary arrears in order to alleviate the suffering of the people.
“These governors should be magnanimous enough to pay this money because our members are sufferings. We know the economic condition and we know what it takes for someone to stay for one month without salary, talk more of someone to stay for 11 or eight months without salary. We are equally calling on the Federal Government to ensure the payment of backlog of salaries, promotion arrears, first 28 days and shortfall in salaries of workers,” he said.
He listed states that owe salary arrears to include Abia, Edo, Osun, Oyo, Kogi, Benue, Rivers and Nasarawa among others.
